Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo hit a first-half hat-trick as they thrashed Malaga 4-0.

Ronaldo had not scored in his previous three Madrid matches but he brought that mini-drought to an end in some style with goals in the 23rd, 28th and 38th minutes to take his tally to 10 in La Liga this season.

Gonzalo Higuain also continued his good recent goalscoring form with Madrid's opener as Jose Mourinho's side made it six wins on the trot in all competitions, during which run they have scored 25 times.

For big-spending Malaga, the defeat shows they still have some way to go in their bid to challenge the big guns in La Liga, with today's loss being their second in succession and third in eight games this term.