Madrid: A pleasant 3-0 home win over Recreativo Huelva kept Atletico Madrid in fourth place in the Spanish Liga, and on course for the Champions League.

In another match, Zaragoza scored a vital last-gasp 1-0 win over seventh-placed Deportivo Coruna.

It was a rare chance for the long-suffering Atletico fans to enjoy themselves, with their team in control from start to finish and playing some slick football at times on Saturday.

The goals were put away by promising teenagers Nacho Camacho and Sergio Aguero, taking advantage of schoolboy errors in the Huelva defence.

Camacho, headed Atletico into the lead in the 24th minute, after Huelva keeper Stefano Sorrentino fumbled a corner from Walter Pernia.

Ten minutes into the second half Huelva defender Martin Caceres made a mess of a Maxi Rodriguez centre, and the rapid Aguero was on hand to make it 2-0.

Camacho made it 3-0 in the 75th minute, after the Huelva defence had failed to clear a Pernia free-kick.

"It was a dream game for me," Camacho, 18, told Radio Marca. "Now we have to carry on this way and get into the Champions League."

The convincing win leaves Atletico with 58 points from 35 games, and relieves the pressure that had been building on coach Javier Aguirre after a poor run of results.

Aguirre's expensive team are now five points ahead of fifth-placed Racing Santande while Huelva, in contrast, stay joint third from bottom, to level with Osasuna on 40 points.

Osasuna are at home on Sunday against Real Madrid, who need to win in order to clinch their 31st league title.

In their match, Zaragoza had created chance after chance, but incredibly failed to beat Deportivo keeper Dudu Aouate.

In the fourth minute of injury time, though, Aouate bizarrely failed to cut out a free-kick, allowing Sergio Garcia to set up Roberto Ayala to score the only goal.

"We really deserved this win," Ayala gasped to La Sexta at the end, "because we never lost faith in ourselves tonight."

The dramatic victory takes Zaragoza up to fifth from bottom with 41 points, one point more than Huelva and Osasuna.

 

Source : IANS