Real Madrid secured safe passage to the Champions League last 16 with a convincing 3-0 win over Sheriff, away from home.
We rated the team based on these key factors:
Finishing
Real Madrid attempted 17 shots, but managed to keep 8 of those on target. Three of those efforts hit the back of the net, which highlights how clinical Los Blancos were on the night.
Karim Benzema for one was a menace all game. He attempted 4 shots - 2 were blocked, one was off target, but his one shot on target found the goal. Again clinical.
Goals win games, and Real Madrid found them in Moldova.
Rating for finishing: 9/10
Defence
There were nervy moments for the Real Madrid defence but what matters most is that Los Blancos kept a clean sheet in this game.
David Alaba made 5 blocks, was never dispossessed, had a pass accuracy of 92% and scored that brilliant free-kick.
Dani Carvajal and Ferland Mendy were brilliant down the flanks for Madrid. They were barely caught out of position and were an asset going forward. Mendy even registered an assist for Benzema's goal.
Courtois didn't really have a lot to do in this game, thanks to the brilliance of the men in front of him.
Rating for defence: 9/10.
Tactics
Carlo Ancelotti went with his traditional 4-3-3 in this game.
It was a front foot approach from Los Blancos as they attacked their opponents from the first blast of the whistle.
This is how Madrid play now - no sitting back or passing it around the middle. The Whites simply take a direct approach to things and try to force the issue early on.
It's not surprising that Real Madrid created 21 chances and made 17 attempts on goal. It could have easily been 4 or 5 goals scored on another day.
As can be seen from this positional report via Whoscored, Real Madrid had Sheriff pinned back with just 20% of the action happening in the away third of the pitch, while 41% was in Sheriff's zone.
Rating for tactics: 8/10
Fighting spirit
Real Madrid should be dominating games such as this, and they did just that.
Of course, Sheriff put up a fight at home, but they were swept aside by Madrid's pace and precision.
In midfield, Toni Kroos put up yet another Man of the Match performance, winning 100% of his ground duels, registering a 96% pass success and then that superb goal.
The team were ready to chase lost courses and ensured there wasn't a repeat of what happened at the Bernabeu.
Rating for fighting spirit: 8/10
