Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick to guide Real Madrid past Wolfsburg and into the semi-finals of the 2016 UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, as Los Blancos beat the Germans, 3-0, at the Santiago Bernabeu in the second leg of their tie and 3-2 on aggregate.Wolfsburg entered the match with a two-goal advantage, but a quick brace from Ronaldo in the first half saw Real regain control of the tie.Los Blancos kept pushing for a decisive third goal and were rewarded when Ronaldo completed his hat-trick after 77 minutes, sending his team through to the next round.As Real's official Twitter account shared, manager Zinedine Zidane opted to leave Raphael Varane, James Rodriguez and Isco on the bench, while Gareth Bale, Ronaldo and Karim Benzema took their usual positions up front:Unsurprisingly, Los Blancos took control of the ball right away and pushed forward in search of a quick goal. Wolfsburg felt comfortable defending their two-goal advantage early, sitting deep in their own half and aiming for the counter-attack.Sergio Ramos powered a header over the crossbar to set the tone for Real, who continued piling on the pressure. Luiz Gustavo only just managed to clear a ball before it reached Ronaldo, and Toni Kroos couldn't connect cleanly with a cross and fired the ball wide.Per Squawka Football, Real were all over Die Wolfe to begin the match:An early goal seemed inevitable, and after just 15 minutes, Ronaldo struck for the first time. Dani Carvajal fired in a low cross, and the Portugal international easily slotted home from close range.Wolfsburg were reeling, and Real pushed on in search of an equaliser. Almost straight from the restart, the hosts won a corner, and once again, Ronaldo found himself in the perfect position to bag his second goal of the match.Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe couldn't help himself:Per Squawka Football, Ronaldo set yet another personal mark with his second goal.With Wolfsburg's two-goal advantage gone after just 17 minutes, the visitors tried to gain a foothold in midfield, but Real continued to dominate play. The counter proved Wolfsburg's only weapon against Los Blancos, with Julian Draxler providing most of the danger.Gustavo tried his luck from a long way out, but Keylor Navas easily dealt with the shot. On the other side of the pitch, Benzema put Diego Benaglio to work, but he couldn't put his shot past the Swiss international.To make matters worse for Wolfsburg, Draxler picked up a knock and was unable to continue, with forward Max Kruse replacing him after just 32 minutes. Sports Illustrated's Grant Wahl wondered if anything would go the Germans' way:Gustavo again threatened Navas, this time forcing the goalkeeper to concede a corner, and Bruno Henrique wasted a golden opportunity to hand the visitors the advantage shortly after, firing a shot against Marcelowith the goal begging at his mercy.Real were happy to drop the pace toward the end of the half, recharging their batteries for another onslaught after the break.Ramos again headed the first chance of the second half over the bar as Los Blancos continued applying pressure, but Wolfsburg seemed to handle it better than before the break and had a few half-chances on the counter. Andre Schurrle should have done better with one of them, curling a shot well wide of the mark.Ronaldo claimed a penalty after he clashed with Gustavo inside the box, and Bale couldn't get his aim right, blasting a shot high and wide. For all of their pressure, Real failed to put together any good chances early in the second half, and the Bernabeu grew restless.A deflected effort from Luka Modric nearly caused problems for Benaglio, and the stopper showed his class minutes later, producing a stunning reflex save to deny Ramos. Somehow, he managed to keep the ball out after it bounced off the post and rolled along his line.This fan shared a GIF of the crucial stop:Benzema fired a volley over Benaglio's goal as Real's search for a third goal continued, and after 77 minutes, they were finally rewarded. Ronaldo produced one of his typical free-kicks, sending it through the wall and leaving Benaglio no chance.Josuha Guilavogui made way for Bas Dost, as Wolfsburg were now forced to attack with numbers and score to send them through to the semi-finals. That left the visitors vulnerable to the counter, however, and Benzema nearly found a fourth goal with 10 minutes left to play, only to find Benaglio in his way.The goalkeeper kept out an excellent shot from Jese Rodriguez as well, as the best chances continued to fail for Los Blancos. A late push from the visitors amounted to nothing, and Real held on for the win and booked their spot in the next round.After the 2-1 win over Barcelona in the Clasico and the Catalans' loss against Real Sociedad that breathed life back into the Spanish title race, Tuesday's big win provided yet another major boost for Real. The Champions League remains the most likely competition in which Los Blancos can nab some silverware, and with momentum on their side, everyone will wish to avoid them.Real's next outing in La Liga will be against Getafe on Saturday, while Wolfsburg will continue their Bundesliga campaign at Werder Bremen the same day.Post-Match ReactionPer ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan, Zidane showered match-winner Ronaldo with praise after the win:Wolfsburg manager Dieter Hecking thought his team did well in the second half, but a single mistake ruined their chances, per DW Sports:He also admitted his team wasn't ready for Real's quick start, despite knowing full well what was coming.With his team now knocked out of European contention, Hecking can turn his full attention to the Bundesliga, where Wolfsburg sit a disappointing eighth, nine points behind Bayer Leverkusen and the final Champions League ticket.Follow @ReverschPassRead more World Football news on BleacherReport.com
Click here to read full news..
