Welsh football star Gareth Bale took his tally to eight goals in his past seven games with a hat-trick as Real Madrid shrugged off the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo to thrash Valladolid 4-0 in Spain.
With the Portuguese star sidelined by a slight muscle strain, Bale scored his first with a header, his second with his weaker right foot and the 24-year-old completed his first hat-trick in Spanish football with a simple left-footed finish a minute from time.
Victory moved Real to within three points of leaders Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, who were also 2-0 victors over Elche.
