Deportivo Coruna were relegated from La Liga on the final day of the season on Saturday, a 2-0 defeat at home to Valencia ending a 20-year stay in the Spanish top flight.
Valencia’s Aritz Aduriz scored after four minutes at the Riazor and after some desperate final minutes with the entire Depor team in the visitors’ area, Roberto Soldado sealed their fate in the sixth minute of time added on. Deportivo, league champions in 2000, finished 18th with 43 points, one from safety, and joined Almeria and Hercules in the second division next term.
Real Zaragoza had started the day in 18th place but won 2-1 at already-safe Levante, captain Gabi scoring both goals for Javier Aguirre’s side.
Earlier, Cristiano Ronaldo set a new La Liga scoring record of 40 goals in a season and Emmanuel Adebayor grabbed a hat-trick as Real Madrid destroyed Almeria 8-1 at the Bernabeu. Newly-crowned champions Barcelona also wrapped up their campaign with a victory, coming back to win 3-1 in Malaga with most of their first team being rested ahead of next weekend’s Champions League final against Manchester United. Barca, who secured their third consecutive league crown last week, finished with 96 points from 38 games, four ahead of second-placed Real Madrid, scorers of 102 league goals this term.
Portuguese forward Ronaldo only needed four minutes to pass the previous league record of 38 goals, held by Hugo Sanchez and Telmo Zarra, bundling in at the far post from a Sergio Ramos header. He also bagged the seventh in the 77th minute, running from deep and firing a long-range effort inside the far post.
Adebayor, whose loan spell from Manchester City is expiring, signed off with three goals, Karim Benzema bagged two and youth team player Joselu notched one at the end.
Malaga struck first at the Rosaleda through Sebastian Fernandez but Barca levelled with a disputed penalty just before the break, Bojan Krkic netting from the spot.
The hosts had caused Barca plenty of problems in the first half but a long-range shot from Ibrahim Afellay and a header from youth team player Marc Bartra in the last 15 minutes sealed Barca’s 30th win of the season.
