Carroll sends Liverpool into FA Cup final


MADRID (AP) ― Archrivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi both set the Spanish league scoring record Saturday in victories.

Ronaldo’s record 41st goal was the deciding score as Spanish leader Real Madrid beat Sporting Gijon 3-1. Ronaldo headed home Angel di Maria’s short cross in the 74th minute Saturday to surpass his own mark, which the Portugal forward set last season.

Nearly two hours later, Messi’s 72nd-minute penalty kick lifted Barcelona to a 2-1 victory at Levante as the three-time defending champions rallied to maintain the four-point difference before next Saturday’s “clasico.”

Ronaldo’s 53rd goal of the season in all competitions, matching his career high.

Miguel de las Cuevas’ penalty saw Sporting take a 30th-minute lead, but Gonzalo Higuain headed home his 21st goal seven minutes later.

Substitute Karim Benzema scored his 18th goal in the 82nd, three minutes after Roberto Canella was sent off for a second booking.

Benzema’s goal took Madrid’s total for the season to 107, matching the mark for most goals in a season set by the Spanish giant in 1989-90.

Messi curled home a 64th-minute equalizer against Levante to close the gap with Ronaldo to one. Then he scored the winner.

Messi’s 63 goals in all competitions are the most in European play since Bayern Munich’s Gerd Mueller scored 67 during the 1972-73 season.

England

Liverpool made the FA Cup final when Andy Carroll headed the winner in the 87th minute for a 2-1 victory over crosstown rival Everton.

For the first time since arriving 15 months ago for $56 million, the striker has scored in consecutive games.

“It’s the best feeling ever,” Carroll said. “I’ve had some criticism but I’ve just kept on going. I get the winner here and it’s a great feeling. I believe in myself every day.”

But the Wembley winner was only Carroll’s 10th goal in 51 Liverpool appearances.

With Liverpool goalkeepers Alexander Doni and Pepe Reina suspended, Brad Jones had to make his first start of the season. He was beaten in the 23rd minute by Nikica Jelavic after some poor play by Liverpool’s defenders.

But Liverpool was gifted an equalizer. Sylvain Distin’s attempt to pass the ball back to goalkeeper Tim Howard was far too weak and Luis Suarez seized it and scored.

Saturday was also fruitful for another divisive striker. Carlos Tevez scored a hat trick in the Premier League as Manchester City routed Norwich 6-1 to keep the heat on Manchester United in the title race. City is two points behind United ahead of its neighbor’s match against Aston Villa.

Tevez stunned Norwich goalkeeper John Ruddy with a swerving strike from the right edge of the penalty area to open the scoring in the 18th minute. He then set up Sergio Aguero with a playful back-heel pass for the second goal in the 27th.

Tevez and Aguero added their second goals in a two-minute span in the second half before Tevez completed his hat trick by slotting the ball into an unguarded net in the 80th.

Wolverhampton stopped a run of seven straight defeats with a 0-0 draw against Sunderland but remained at the bottom. Blackburn, which is five points ahead of Wolves, sustained a fifth straight loss, 3-0 to Swansea.

Queens Park Rangers missed a chance to move more than two points clear of Bolton in 18th place after a 1-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion.

Germany

Borussia Dortmund captain Sebastian Kehl scored to lead his team to a 2-1 victory over Schalke in the 140th Ruhr derby to close in on a second successive Bundesliga title Saturday.

Dortmund set a Bundesliga record of 25 games unbeaten as Kehl’s 63rd-minute winner moved the defending champion eight points ahead of Bayern Munich, which was held to a 0-0 draw by Mainz in the late game.

Jefferson Farfan had given Schalke the lead in the ninth minute, but Lukasz Piszczek equalized from a narrow angle nine minutes later. Kehl scored from a corner kick.

Dortmund only needs one win from its three remaining games to become the first team other than Bayern to retain the title since it last did so 16 years ago.

Kaiserslautern is almost certainly relegated after losing 2-0 at home to Nuremberg; Bayer Leverkusen salvaged a dramatic 3-3 draw with visiting Hertha Berlin; Augsburg won 2-1 at Wolfsburg; and Hamburger SV also claimed an important victory in the fight against relegation with a 1-0 win over Hannover.

Scotland

Leigh Griffiths sent Hibernian into the Scottish Cup final with a 2-1 victory over Aberdeen.

Griffiths latched on to Garry O’Connor’s pass to slip the ball into the net in the 85th minute.

O’Connor had put Hibernian in front after three minutes, but Rory Fallon’s volley tied it in the 59th at Hampden Park.