Ronaldo makes history as Real finish with a win

06 December 2017 22:27

Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to score in every Champions League group stage match as Real Madrid beat Borussia Dortmund 3-2 at the Bernabeu.

The holders, who finish as runners-up in Group H behind Tottenham, were set on their way by Borja Mayoral’s first goal in the competition, set up by Ronaldo, who quickly added a second himself for his ninth in the Champions League this season.

His strike ensured he found the back of the net at least once in all six group games before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck either side of half-time to unexpectedly level things up.

Lucas Vazquez’s late goal inflicted another defeat on Dortmund, who hung on to third place in the group to qualify for the Europa League.

Tweet of the match

– The club’s official Twitter account (@realmadriden) pays homage to Cristiano Ronaldo’s scoring exploits.

Star man – Isco

Spain Soccer Champions League
Isco, left, was key for Madrid (Paul White/AP)

The Spain international pulled the strings in midfield and all that was good about Real Madrid’s play went through him. He was cleverly involved in the opening goal and laid on a handful of chances for others to score, which were not taken. Received a rousing round of applause from the home fans when he was replaced by Marcos Llorente after 69 minutes.

Moment of the match

Ronaldo’s goal. Another game, another record for the Portugal international. While he may not have been at his best in La Liga this season, scoring only twice, he has clearly saved his best for the Champions League. At least one goal in each of the six group games, making nine in total.

Stat attack

Real Madrid v Tottenham Hotspur – UEFA Champions League – Group H – Santiago Bernabeu
Isco has been a major creative force for Real Madrid (Empics)

Isco is the only Real Madrid player to have provided at least five assists in each of the last five seasons in all competitions, laying on 44 goals in total.

Ratings

Real Madrid: Keylor Navas 5, Sergio Ramos 5, Raphael Varane 4, Fernandez Nacho 5, Theo Hernandez 6, Carlos Casemiro 6, Lucas Vazquez 6, Isco 7, Mateo Kovacic 6, Cristiano Ronaldo 6, Borja Mayoral 6. Subs: Marco Asensio (for Varane, 38) 5, Dani Ceballos (for Kovacic, 57) 5, Marcos Llorente (for Isco, 69) 5.

Borussia Dortmund: Roman Burk 5, Sokratis Papastathopoulos 5, Neven Subotic 5, Marcel Schmelzer 6, Raphael Guerreiro 5, Marc Bartra 5, Nuri Sahin 6, Mahmoud Dahoud 6, Christian Pulisic 5, Shinji Kagawa 6, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang 6. Subs: Julian Weigl (for Sahin, 65) 5, Omer Toprak (for Bartra, 80) 4, Andriy Yarmolenko (for Kagawa, 90) n/a.

Who’s up next?

Real Madrid v Sevilla (LaLiga, December 9)

Borussia Dortmund v Werder Bremen (Bundesliga, December 9)

Source: By Press Association Sport staff