Football
2015-16 UEFA Champions League, Group Stage
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PA Sport 9y

Cristiano Ronaldo reaches career 500-goal landmark as Real Madrid beat Malmo

Cristiano Ronaldo's double took him past 500 career goals and handed Real Madrid a narrow 2-0 Champions League victory over 10-man Malmo.

The Portugal international struck after 29 minutes and then at the death to claim victory in Sweden and maintain his side's perfect start to their Group A campaign.

In the process, Ronaldo, who started the night with 499 goals to his name, equalled Raul's club record of 323 and will now hope to surpass that mark in Sunday's Madrid derby.

Swedish champions Malmo, who had defender Yoshimar Yotun sent off for a second bookable offence late on, remained in the game until the final minute, but ultimately emerged empty-handed.

On a night when the Swedes set out to contain their illustrious visitors, it was they who produced the game's first two meaningful efforts with full-back Anton Tinnerholm and skipper Markus Rosenberg testing goalkeeper Keylor Navas from distance in quick succession.

However, Rafael Benitez's men dominated possession before the break and captain Ronaldo forced Malmo's keeper Johan Wiland into two solid saves in a minute before only just failing to connect with Toni Kroos' 18th-minute cross.

But Real finally took the lead with 29 minutes gone when Isco's superb control from Mateo Kovacic's long ball allowed him to play Ronaldo in, and his finish at the end of a stunning counter-attack was unerring.

Full-back Dani Caravajal was denied a second three minutes before the break when his swerving right-foot strike clipped both the bar and the post, leaving the home side with hope of fighting their way back into the game.

Ronaldo, who had driven a first-half free-kick straight into the defensive wall, repeated the feat 12 minutes after the restart after being felled by defender Rasmus Bengtsson in a tepid start to the second half.

Nikola Djurdjic might have levelled nine minutes later, but could not make the most of Yotun's far-post corner, while Navas was relieved to see Rosenberg's 74th-minute header from Tinnerholm's cross fly just wide of his right post.

Yotun's evening did not last an awful lot longer as he collected a second yellow card for a foul on Lucas Vasquez with 12 minutes remaining, and although Wiland had twice denied Ronaldo as time ran down, he could not keep out his 90th-minute strike.

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