Madrid muted despite captain Cristiano's strike and Real record

By Ben Hayward | Spanish Football Editor

Real Madrid march on. The European champions extended their winning streak to 19 matches - a new Spanish record for consecutive victories in all competitions - by beating Ludogorets 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu.

But it was a below-par performance from the team and captain Cristiano Ronaldo on a Tuesday night where the home fans were notable by their absence.

Handed the armband in the Champions League for the first time in his career, Ronaldo gave Madrid the lead from the penalty spot after 20 minutes, dinking the ball down the middle to score his 72nd goal in Europe's premier club competition and surpass his former team-mate Raul in the process.

With Ludogorets midfielder Marcelinho also sent off for handball in giving away the spot-kick, the onus was on Ronaldo to push on and score a few more to match Lionel Messi's record of 74 goals in the Champions League.

But the 29-year-old looked increasingly isolated as the game wore on. Often passing when he usually would have shot, the Portuguese struggled to create openings as the Bulgarians defended in numbers despite their numerical disadvantage.

With James Rodriguez and Luka Modric missing through injury, Karim Benzema given a night off, and Marcelo on the bench, Madrid looked less fluid than in recent weeks and Cristiano did little to lift the mood after his first goal.


Muted atmosphere | Many fans stayed away from the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday (Alberto Pinero)
Gareth Bale made it 2-0 later in the first half, while there were goals for Alvaro Arbeloa and youngster Alvaro Medran in a strange second period. But the atmosphere never really lifted on a cool night in what was essentially a dead rubber with Madrid already confirmed as Group B winners and Ludogorets as the bottom team.

It would perhaps be unfair to expect anything but a professional outing in a match like this, particularly with a trip to the Club World Cup in Morocco coming up next week.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti has overseen a dramatic change in fortunes for Madrid since his side suffered back-to-back defeats against Real Sociedad and Atletico back in September.

In addition to 19 consecutive wins, Real claimed six straight victories in the Champions League group stages and lead La Liga by two points from Barcelona. Madrid now face Almeria on Friday before travelling to North Africa in search of yet another trophy.

"The game changed after the first goal and we won without any problems," the Italian boss said afterwards. "I have an extraordinary group and a great relationship with the players. The important thing is to top the group and now we will concentrate on our next Liga game."
That's Real recently. Sometimes they have sparkled and on other occasions they have strolled. But they keep on winning and that's a good sign as they seek to be crowned champions of the world later this month.