VALENCIA, Spain -- Gareth Bale filled the void left by the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, sealing Real Madrids 19th Copa del Rey title with a late goal in Wednesdays 2-1 win over Barcelona. LaRon Byrd Jersey . Ronaldos extra-time play gave Madrid the 2011 Copa del Rey title at Barcelonas expense. In his absence Wednesday, Bale scored in the 85th minute -- his first goal in three "clasico" matches -- to make sure Madrid repeated the feat. Angel Di Maria scored Madrids opener from a counterattack in the 11th minute, capitalizing on a Barcelona lineup that seemed to lack ideas in attack and was slow to recover in defence. Defender Marc Bartra equalized against the run of play in the 67th by heading in from a corner kick to ruin goalkeeper Iker Casillas record run of not conceding in this edition of the tournament. The goal appeared to energize Barcelona, sparking Lionel Messi into action and ensuring the last 15 minutes became a frenetic back-and-forth contest. But with the game hanging in the balance, Bale got the winner when he sprinted down the left side of the pitch, even running out of bounds to avoid Bartra, before racing into the area and rolling the ball under goalkeeper Jose Pinto. "It is difficult to see a player be able to sprint like that at that stage of the game," Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino said. "The game was going our way after we had levelled, until that counterattack." Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said the goal was "surely the most important" of Bales career, which took a major turn last summer when Madrid broke its own spending record to pay his (euro)100-million transfer to pry him from Tottenham. "It was a decisive moment. When Bartra scored anything could have happened," Ancelotti said. Barcelona, however, still had one last chance, only for Neymars shot to hit the upright in the 90th. Neymars last-gasp effort almost "scared us to death," Casillas said. "Fortune was on our side, and we are thankful for it." Ronaldo joined his teammates to celebrate with their fans on the pitch before the team filed past King Juan Carlos to receive their medals and the prized trophy. The plane carrying the Spanish monarch had technical problems that delayed take-off, but he arrived on time to watch the match along with more than 50,000 spectators divided into large sections of white and blue-and-burgundy club colours. After failing to win the cup competition between 1993 and 2011, Madrid has won it twice in the last four years. Ancelotti earned his first trophy for Madrid and first "clasico" win after losing his first two meetings with Barcelona, and his team will now focus on overtaking Atletico Madrid in the league and its Champions League semifinal against Bayern Munich. The loss is a setback for Barcelona and a major blow to Martino. In an eight-day span, Barcelona exited Europes top-tier competition with a loss, slipped to third place in the Spanish league, and then lost Copa del Rey to its fiercest rival. "It has been a hard week on all fronts," said Martino, who remains confident of hanging on to his job for one more season. "As I have said for one, two, three months now, I dont feel that my future has changed because of all that we lost, and nor do I think it would be different if we had won." Barcelona will now have to catch both Madrid and Atletico with only five rounds left in the Spanish league to make sure it doesnt end the season without a major piece of silverware for the first time since the arrival of Pep Guardiola in 2008-09. Phil Taylor Browns Jersey . He didnt even match his first-half total from Friday night. He didnt have to, with the Knicks offering him plenty of support for a change. Joe Thomas Browns Jersey . The Arena das Dunas in the northeastern city of Natal sustained minor damage during the protests, but demonstrators stayed away on Sunday and officials said the stadium passed its first test, with only minor adjustments needed going forward.MILAN, Italy -- Mario Balotelli scored one goal and Kaka added two as AC Milan comfortably beat relegation-threatened Chievo Verona 3-0 Saturday to give coach Clarence Seedorf consecutive victories for the first time since being hired in January. Balotelli volleyed in a cross from Adil Rami four minutes in at the San Siro. Kaka doubled the lead in the 27th after controlling a lob pass from Keisuke Honda and the Brazil playmaker scored again in the 54th with a long, angled shot that went in off the post. The victory moved Milan level with Lazio in eighth place, six points behind Inter Milan in the race for fifth and the final Europa League berth. A week ago, Seedorfs job seemed at risk but Milan has now picked up points in three consecutive matches. "Its a special moment for us," said Kaka, who made his 300th appearance in the Italian league. "Football is great like that. Everything can change in a hurry." Earlier, Atalanta won 2-0 at Bologna for a club-record sixth straight victory in Serie A. Atalanta is four points ahead of Milan in seventh. Balotellis goal was the 45th of his Serie A career -- in 95 matches -- and it followed another strong performance in a 2-0 win over Fiorentina on Wednesday, when he scored one goal and set up another. Milaan could have had another goal in the 38th when Balotelli set up Honda with only the goalkeeper to beat but the Japan international wasted the opportunity by shooting high. Miles Austin Youth Jersey. Kakas strong performance came after Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani confirmed before kickoff that he has a contractual option to leave Milan if the squad does not qualify for the Champions League. "Im happy here and hope to stay," said Kaka, who rejoined Milan from Real Madrid in September. Chievo had a chance to pull one back but a penalty from Cyril Thereau in added time hit the crossbar following a foul by Milan defender Cristian Zaccardo. The only other negative note for Milan came when midfielder Sulley Muntari was carried off on a stretcher in the first half with an apparent ankle injury. In Bologna, forward Giuseppe De Luca put Atalanta ahead in the 22nd after stripping Bologna midfielder Diego Perez and dribbling in to score. Four minutes later, Paraguayan midfielder Marcelo doubled the lead after trading passes with De Luca and beating goalkeeper Gianluca Curci from 20 metres (yards). During its winning streak, Atalanta has outscored the opposition 12-2. Chievo and Bologna remained three and two points, respectively, above the relegation zone. cheap nfl jerseyscheap jerseys ' ' '
