Falcao hits five as Atletico thrash Deportivo

Radamel Falcao became the first La Liga player in a decade to score five goals in a match as Atletico Madrid thrashed Deportivo La Coruna 6-0 to keep the pressure on Barcelona at the top of La Liga on Sunday.

The win moved Atletico to within three points of Barcelona ahead of the Catalans' game at Real Betis later on Sunday.

On Saturday Real Madrid kept up the pressure on the top two with a 3-2 win at Valladolid, but remain five points behind Atletico in third.

Falcao hit a double along with a Diego Costa strike to put Atletico out of sight by half-time.

He completed his hat-trick with a second-half penalty before hitting two more to make him the first player to hit five in a La Liga game since Fernando Morientes for Real Madrid against Las Palmas in 2002.

It means the Colombian has 16 goals in the league this season and it was Atletico's eighth straight home win of the campaign.

- AFP