Real Madrid coast through to last 16 of Copa del Rey

Madrid: Real Madrid eased into the last 16 of the Copa del Rey with a 5-1 win over third-tier Ponferradina, while Sevilla, Espanyol and Mallorca also advanced after victories on Tuesday. Spanish winger Jose Callejon led defending champion Madrid’s attack in the second-leg match, marking his third straight start with the opening and closing goals at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium to complete a 7-1 aggregate victory. Callejon was played through by Mesut Oezil in the 25th minute and used his speed to go alone toward goalkeeper Orlando Quintano, who was slow to react as a low shot went past. [caption id=“attachment_161761” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Real Madrid’s youth player Jose Callejon has shone in his handful of appearances for the first team. Reuters”]  [/caption] Nuri Sahin, getting a rare start with coach Jose Mourinho resting regulars Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso and Angel di Maria, scored his first goal since joining the Spanish giant in the offseason by heading in Oezil’s 44th-minute corner at the far post. Quintano spilled a rebound after saving Esteban Granero’s free kick for Raphael Varane to score third in the 49th. Acoran Barrera scored a consolation goal for the visitors’ four minutes later after coasting through Madrid’s half untouched to curl a shot past backup ‘keeper Antonio Adan. Joselu Mato scored into an open net from Callejon’s cross in the 79th, moments after coming on as a substitute as one of four B-team players used by Mourinho. Callejon capped the win for the topflight leaders thanks to Sahin’s long ball, which put him free into the area. The Spaniard tucked it past Quintano to complete the rout that closed with one Ponferradina player asking for and getting Mourinho’s jacket as players swapped shirts. “This team is getting better day-by-day and with every game,” Mourinho said. “We’re very good and we’re doing things very well. If we played in another league, we’d have a bigger advantage.” Second-half substitute Frederic Kanoute scored from a penalty and a header inside eight minutes to give Sevilla a 2-1 victory over San Roque, a day after club president Jose Maria del Nido was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison on embezzlement charges. Kanoute also scored in the first leg, giving the Andalucians a 3-1 win on aggregate over the third-division side. Also, Espanyol beat second division club Celta Vigo 4-2 to advance after a scoreless first-leg, while Mallorca beat Sporting Gijon 2-0 to advance 2-1 overall. Barcelona holds a 1-0 edge over Hospitalet ahead of their return leg at the Camp Nou on Thursday, while Atletico Madrid coach Gregorio Manzano may take charge of his last-match on Wednesday when his team tries to overturn a 2-1 deficit to third-tier club Albacete . Media reports have suggested former Atletico and Argentina midfielder Diego Simeone will take over the coaching duties after resigning as coach of Argentina’s Racing Club. AP