Real land second big prize in a week

Real Madrid 3 Athletic Bilbao 1: On a night when the heat was great enough to melt the very silverware they were chasing, Real Madrid maintained their cool to beat Athletic Bilbao and secure a 29th Spanish championship. It turned out, David Beckham wasn't the only thing acquired by Real this week. Michael Walker reports from the Bernabeu Stadium

Ronaldo, who amazingly had never won a league title before at any of his previous clubs, Cruzeiro, PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona and Internazionale did the necessary, steadying the nerves on a difficult evening with Madrid's first and third goals.

In his 32nd league appearance of the season, these were Ronaldo's 22nd and 23rd goals. With Roberto Carlos scoring a belting free-kick from Beckham territory at the edge of the penalty area in between after Bittor Alkiza had equalised for Bilbao, the Brazilians ensured Real did not finish the season empty-handed and red-faced.

Five hundred miles north in San Sebastian, Real Sociedad, the only team who could catch Madrid, also won, 3-0, but ended a gallant season second.

On a bad night for Bilbao, Barcelona leapt above them to clinch a UEFA Cup place.

Whether that will make Ronaldinho want to go to the Nou Camp is another matter, especially as the Madrid president Florentino Perez is expected in Paris today.

Beckham may not be the only player Manchester United lose to Madrid this summer.

The lack of rain in Spain has been as much a topic of conversation this past week as Beckham's signing. This has been the hottest June here since records began and yesterday was another pavement-burner in the capital.

Just over an hour before kick-off thermometers outside the stadium were displaying figures of 42C. But it was also a night simmering with soccer possibilities. Not only was the destination of the league title uncertain, the opposition here had powerful motivation.

The evening began with a minute's silence for the Athletic president Javier Uria, who died of cancer this week, and the usual unfurling of banners at the Ultras' end of the stadium.

One said: "The league is in your hands." Another referred to Guti, expected to leave to accommodate Beckham. "You can't buy or sell Real Madrid - Guti is one of us," it said. It appeared to miss the whole point of last week: that Real Madrid are all about buying and selling.

Another banner mentioned the "humiliation" of neighbours Atletico Madrid last Sunday.

That 4-0 deconstruction had taken all of four minutes to get under way, Ronaldo scoring with a wonderful left-foot strike.

Last night the great Brazilian took more than twice as long to open the scoring, a more prosaic tap-in from six yards. But the goal was made beautifully by two of the other superstars, Luis Figo drifting inside to feed Roberto Carlos. The cross from Roberto Carlos was such that all Ronaldo had to was make contact. He did.

At that point it looked as though Bilbao were going to capitulate. But, as the game slowed to a walking pace, the visitors began to edge their way back into contention.

The Bernabeu grew tetchy quickly, huffing and puffing at misplaced passes. There were moments when Guti was most definitely not one of us.

Bittor Alkiza's goal hardly helped. It was almost surreal, the midfielder shooting optimistically from 25 yards.

The shot flew over the head of Fernando Hierro, whom Iker Casillas presumably thought was going to head it. Casillas did not move as the ball swept past him.

One-one at half-time wouldn't have pleased the locals. But in injury-time Ronaldo was felled on the edge of the area. Beckham country. Roberto Carlos has already spoken about free-kicks next season and he immediately demonstrated his ability, driving home a 20-yarder.

With Sociedad drawing 0-0, La Liga was very much back in Real Madrid's hands. As news came through of two quick goals for Sociedad, however, the tension increased again. Ronaldo missed a reasonable chance and the whistling began in earnest.

It was suddenly time for the star names to stand up and so they did. Just past the hour the world's two best players, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo combined once more.

Running on to Zidane's pass, Ronaldo, daft World Cup haircut and all, drilled the ball diagonally into the bottom corner.

For all their wealth and celebrity, for Ronaldo, for Real Madrid, it was a special moment.

REAL MADRID (4-4-1-1): Casillas; Salgado, Hierro, Helguera, Roberto Carlos; Luis Figo, Makelele, Guti, Zidane (Solari, 90); Raul; Ronaldo (Morientes, 81).

ATHLETIC BILBAO (4-2-3-1): Aranzubia; Prieto, Lacruz, Karanka, Del Horno; Gurpegui, Alkiza; Etxeberria, Yeste, Ezquerro; Urzaiz.

Referee: R Ramirez Dominguez.

Guardian Service