The result is expected to go a long way towards deciding the La Liga champion this season, as the win allows Madrid to move past Sevilla and into second place, two points back of league-leaders Barcelona with five games remaining.

Enzo Maresca got the scoring started with a brilliant volley from the top of the box in the 41st minute, but Madrid answered with three second-half goals in a 23-minute span to take a two-goal lead. Javier Chevanton scored in stoppage time to make it a one-goal game, but it was not enough to keep Sevilla from falling further off the pace in the title race.

Madrid was the better side over the first 40 minutes of the game, but it was Sevilla who moved in front before halftime. A free kick was sent into the box and flicked on by Frederic Kanoute. Maresca was positioned at the top of the box and drilled a strong left-footed volley into the top right corner of the net.

Madrid continued to be the stronger side after the restart, and they finally cracked the scoreboard in the 62nd minute. A brilliant through-ball from Guti allowed Van Nistelrooy to get in behind the defense and work his way past keeper Andres Palop before driving the ball into the empty net.

Guti once again played the role of provider in the 78th minute to give the home side the lead. He once again found a small opening in the Sevilla defense and slid a pass through it to Robinho, who made no mistake with the finish.

The game looked to be all but decided in the 85th minute when Van Nistelrooy headed home a rebound from close range, but Chevanton pulled one back in stoppage time when he curled a free kick around the wall and into the back of the net. However, Madrid ran out the final two minutes and claimed the huge win to stay on the heels of its league rival.

In other action in Spain on Sunday, Levante doubled up on last-placed Gimnastic 2-0, Mallorca got the best of Osasuna 3-1, Getafe blanked Real Betis 2-0 and Real Zaragoza was held to a 0-0 draw by Racing. Villarreal got past Celta Vigo 1-0, Espanyol downed Atletico Madrid 2-1 and Recreativo played to a 0-0 draw with Athletic Bilbao.