Getafe, Spain (SportsNetwork.com) - Real Madrid kept pace with both Atletico Madrid and Barcelona on Sunday by securing a 3-0 win at Getafe courtesy of goals from Jese, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric.
With both Atletico and Barcelona tallying wins on Saturday, the pressure was on Real Madrid to collect three points and remain level with the other two title contenders.
Jese scored after five minutes to put Madrid in the lead while Benzema doubled the advantage midway through the opening half.
Modric then capped the scoring in the 66th minute to move Real level with the other two sides on 60 points.
With Cristiano Ronaldo serving the second game of a three-match ban for Real, Jese settled the team's nerves inside of five minutes when he took a pass on the wing and cut inside before curling a shot inside the far post.
Benzema made it 2-0 in the 27th minute when he brought down a cross from Angel Di Maria and calmly dispatched his shot past goalkeeper Miguel Moya.
Madrid took its foot off the pedal a bit in the second half, allowing Getafe to get a few looks at goal, but Modric secured the win in the 66th when he received a pass at the edge of the penalty area and drove a low shot into the bottom corner.
Fourth-place Athletic Bilbao sustained a 2-1 home defeat to Espanyol as Diego Colotto scored the winner for the visitors in 65th minute after Athletic equalized nine minutes earlier through Carlos Gurpegui.
Granada climbed six points clear of the bottom three after a 1-0 victory over last-place Real Betis with Piti scoring the lone goal in the 31st minute before both teams had a player sent off in the second half.
Sunday's other match in La Liga saw Sevilla and Valencia play to a 0-0 draw as Los Che played the final 40 minutes with 10 men following a red card to Ricardo Costa. Ivan Rakitic could have won the game for Sevilla in the 63rd minute, but he failed to convert a penalty kick.
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