Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo was the scourge of AS Roma again as he inspired the hosts to a 2-0 win and a place in the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday, scoring and setting up a goal Rodriguez to seal a 4-0 aggregate victory.
The Portugal forward, top scorer in the competition this season with 13 goals, netted for the sixth time in three games in all competitions by finishing off substitute Lucas Vazquez’s cross at the near post after 64 minutes. Four minutes later Ronaldo, who put Real on the way to a 2-0 win in the first leg of the last-16 tie with a stunning strike, released Rodriguez with a delicate pass and the Colombia forward prodded the ball between the legs of keeper Wojciech Szczesny.
“It was a difficult game even though some people didn’t expect it would be, but in the end we achieved our objective, which was to go through, and we didn’t concede a goal,” Real coach Zinedine Zidane told a news conference.
Real’s Keylor Navas kept his sixth straight Champions League clean sheet to move ahead of former Manchester United stopper Edwin van der Sar with the second-longest run in the competition without conceding a goal and is now unbeaten in 540 minutes.
Roma coach Luciano Spalletti said before the game that he was “asking for the impossible” from his side as they looked to overturn the deficit surrendered at the Olympic Stadium, but they had two clear chances to take the lead before the break.
Edin Dzeko and Mohamed Salah were each through on goal but shot wide of the near post. In the second half, Navas rushed out to deny Roma defender Kostas Manolas and then went flying to his right to claw away a stinging low strike by Diego Perotti.
“We had our chances and we had to score them. If we had it would have changed our mentality and the game,” Roma coach Luciano Spalletti told a news conference.
“We have thrown away a great chance because Madrid are not in great form, their football is not irresistible.”
Real’s Costa Rica keeper Navas has yet to let in a goal in this season’s Champions League and only trails German Jens Lehmann, who went 853 minutes in Europe’s elite club competition without conceding for Arsenal.
Roma’s Egypt forward Salah missed another chance at the near post in the second period while the game was still goalless, but Ronaldo showed no such mercy at the other end.
The 31-year-old, who scored four times in the second half on Saturday in a 7-1 La Liga mauling of Celta Vigo, fired past a helpless Szczesny after an excellent piece of skill and cross by Vazquez, before teeing up Rodriguez to finish off the Italians.

Ronaldo booed despite Real’s win
Cristiano Ronaldo was booed by Real Madrid fans despite grabbing one goal and laying on another in their 2-0 Champions League last-16 second leg win over AS Roma on Tuesday.
Some sections of the Bernabeu crowd voiced their displeasure at the club’s all-time leading scorer because he also missed a few scoring chances as Real reached the quarter-finals with a 4-0 aggregate victory.
Ronaldo’s teammate, Spain defender Sergio Ramos, gave his backing to the Portugal forward. “I would tell the fans to think a little first,” Ramos was quoted as saying by the Marca newspaper.
“I respect them but when things don’t go well they should support their players because we all want the best for Real Madrid.
“He’s a historic player for Real Madrid, he keeps proving that year after year, look at what he’s achieved.
“When the fans at the Bernabeu boo you it is because they want to transmit their demands to you, they want to push us and see the best performance from us,” added Ramos. Real coach Zinedine Zidane said the booing would simply spur Ronaldo on. “It will only motivate him,” Zidane told the Spanish television network
TVE. “The important thing is that every time Cristiano is on the pitch he wants to score and he keeps doing it.” Ronaldo netted in the 64th minute before setting up the second goal of the night for James Rodriguez four minutes later.
Earlier this month Zidane vouched for the harmony in the Real dressing room after comments by Ronaldo that hinted at divisions. The Portuguese was quoted after last month’s 1-0 home defeat by Atletico Madrid as saying that if all his teammates were at his level, Real would be top of La Liga instead of third. Ronaldo said later that he had been misquoted.
“Roma made things hard for us, they had dangerous chances, but after that we played well,” Ramos was quoted as saying by the Marca newspaper.
“It’s obvious that the margin for error in the Champions League is minimum and this should make us reflect. We have to learn from these situations because the Champions League is our last throw of the dice.”
Madrid, however, must quickly learn how to plug the holes that were on display against Roma, because whoever they meet in the last eight next month are unlikely to pass up the gifts Dzeko and Salah squandered.