Real Madrid found solace in the Champions League once more as a 2-0 win at Roma confirmed top spot in Group G following a humiliating 3-0 defeat to Eibar in La Liga.
The three-time reigning champions took a 47th-minute lead through Gareth Bale, who capitalised on Federico Fazio’s mistake.
That came after Cengiz Under’s woeful miss at the end of the first half and Real doubled their lead when Lucas Vazquez struck to secure top spot in the pool.
The result which booked them a round of 16 berth in this season’s competition also extended an outstanding record.
Madrid have now qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League on 23 occasions, the last 22 consecutively.
They also remain the team to have done so more times than anyone else.
Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United have managed to qualify from the group stage on 22 occasions, while Juventus have achieved it 19 times.
