Copa del Rey, fourth round, first leg

The last three matches of the fourth round first leg took place tonight, almost one month after the opening games. Real Madrid were in action against Alicante, and Bernd Schuster used the opportunity to give a run out to his lesser used players. However they came within seconds of defeat, Balboa heading a last minute goal to make it 1-1 after Borja had given the second division B side the lead from the penalty spot with an hour on the clock.

There was much interest as well in Valencia's game at Real Unión after Ronaldo Koeman had told Cañizares and Albelda they were no longer welcome at the club. In the end though it was forgotten man Zigic who saved the day, the Serbian striker scoring twice after the restart to give them a 1-2 victory. Goikoetxea had put the Basque team ahead in the eleventh minute.

There was one all first division fixture as well between Espanyol and Deportivo, where honours were shared in a 1-1 draw. The visitors had a goal disallowed before Sergio beat Lafuente with a free kick on the half hour mark, but Corominas equalised for the Catalans with three minutes to go after Tamudo set him up. (19.12.07)