Ronaldo king of Madrid with derby hat-trick

Cristiano Ronaldo grabbed a hat-trick in a sensational performance as Real Madrid beat city rivals Atletico 4-1 to go four points clear in La Liga last night.

Ronaldo put Real ahead with a sublime free-kick from distance which flew past home keeper Thibaut Courtois.

Colombian striker Radamel Falcao equalised on 55 minutes as he headed past Iker Casillas.

But Ronaldo then took control of the game, flashing a brilliant shot past Courtois on 68 minutes before scoring from the spot on 83 minutes to complete his hat-trick after Gonzalo Higuain was fouled by Diego Godin.

Substitute Jose Maria Callejon finished two minutes from time.

Meanwhile, Alessandro Del Piero came off the bench to net the decisive goal as Juventus regained top spot in Serie A last night with a 2-1 home victory over Champions League hopefuls Lazio.

The unbeaten Turin outfit found themselves toppled at the summit by AC Milan 24 hours earlier, but Simone Pepe set Juve on their way after half an hour.

Stefano Mauri equalised for the visitors on the stroke of half-time but Del Piero converted an 82nd-minute free-kick to lift Antonio Conte’s side a point above Milan with six games left.