Real Madrid CF secured top spot in Group D with a convincing triumph against GNK Dinamo Zagreb, a result which ended the Croatian champions' interest in European competition this season.
Dinamo coach Krunoslav Jurčić stated his team were facing "the best side in the world" before kick-off. Even so, it is unlikely he would have foreseen the hosts taking a 3-0 lead inside the opening ten minutes through Karim Benzema, José Callejón and Gonzalo Higuaín.
Mesut Özil soon added a fourth while Benzema and Callejón registered their second goals of the night after the break. Fatos Beqiraj and Ivan Tomečak did provide a silver lining for Dinamo, both scoring late on to record the visitors' first goals of the group stage.
José Mourinho made six changes to the team that won 3-2 at Valencia CF last weekend yet it was two of his regulars, Özil and Benzema, who were involved in the second-minute opener. Latching on to Fábio Coentrão's pass, the French international forward freed Özil down the left before calmly slotting his team-mate's cut-back past Ivan Kelava. Benzema was involved again shortly afterwards, this time holding up play before releasing Callejón whose low drive from the edge of the area flew past the Dinamo goalkeeper.
Dinamo's hopes of picking up a first point in the section looked doomed when Higuaín turned Leandro Cufré before dinking in adroitly at the near post. Unrelenting in their pursuit of a 250th victory in UEFA club competition, the nine-time European champions responded to a Luis Ibáñez attempt by making it 4-0 in the 20th minute, Özil this time finding the net after Kelava palmed Higuaín's shot into the Germany midfielder's path.
Unfortunately for the visitors, the hosts emerged after the break looking to continue their quest for goals and they added to their tally when Callejón had time and space to finish with ease after accepting Raphaël Varane's lofted pass.
Kelava did his best to keep the score down, denying Higuaín and Callejón with flying saves, but he was forced to pick the ball out of his net for a sixth time when Benzema placed a shot past him having played a neat one-two with Higuaín. With top spot in the group secured, Madrid were hoping to remain the only team not to concede in this season's UEFA Champions League but Beqiraj's header eight minutes from time put paid to that, while Tomečak added a second before the end.
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