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A first-half brace from Karim Benzema helped Real Madrid secure a comfortable 2-0 victory over Borussia Monchengladbach at the Alfredo di Stefano Stadium.
The hosts came into this clash knowing that anything other than a victory might not be enough to secure qualification to the UEFA Champions League knockout rounds. They got off to the perfect start when their number nine put them ahead inside the opening 10 minutes.
Makeshift right-back Lucas Vasquez won possession deep in his own half and drove upfield before delivering a scintillating cross into the box for Karim Benzema to nod it.
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It was exactly the start that Real Madrid needed and gave them the impetus to seize the initiative.
In what was a dominant display, Los Blancos stamped their authority on the game and got a well-deserved second goal in the 30th minute.
Some excellent link-up play between Rodrygo and Luka Modric allowed the Brazilian space to cross into the box, and Benzema was on hand to guide the ball beyond the reach of Yann Sommer in the visitors' goal.
From then on, Real Madrid totally controlled proceedings and went into cruise control, ensuring that their opponents did not get too many opportunities.
They ramped up the pressure in the final quarter of the game and forced Sommer into some decent saves, even hitting the post twice late on.
The victory guarantees Real Madrid the top spot in Group B and here, we shall be having a rundown of five talking points from the fixture.
#5 Real Madrid pass second test in season-defining week
It is common knowledge that Real Madrid started the current campaign poorly. Home and away losses to Shakhtar Donestk put the La Liga giants in real danger of exiting the UEFA Champions League at the group stage.
The story was not much different domestically, and last week's reversal in Ukraine meant that the capital side had won just one of their previous five games.
In the eternal hot-seat that is the Real Madrid manager's job, this is enough to lose your job, never mind the fact that Zinedine Zidane had guided the club to their most successful period in recent history.
Club president Florentino Perez reportedly had a meeting to decide Zidane's fate and Mauricio Pochettino, as well as club legend Raul Gonzalez, were name-dropped as potential replacements.
It was on the backdrop of this uncertainty that Real Madrid entered a week that could have had huge ramifications on their entire season.
First up was a trip to the Ramos Sanchez Pizjuan to face Sevilla, before consecutive home games against Monchengladbach and Atletico Madrid in the derby on Saturday.
Going against the form book, Real Madrid have triumphed in the first two games and passed with flying colours and this will give them added impetus to face off their city rivals who are currently on an unbeaten run of 27 matches in La Liga.
Heading into this week, Zinedine Zidane was not certain of being in a job much longer but these two wins have bought him some extra time in the Spanish capital.
#4 Despite defeat, Borussia Monchengladbach secure qualification to the knockout round
When Borussia Monchengladbach were grouped with Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Shakhtar Donetsk, the Germans were given an outside chance of qualifying from the group, considering the pedigree of the Spaniards and Italians.
They, however, kicked off their campaign with consecutive 2-2 draws with Inter Milan and Real Madrid, following that up with a comprehensive 10-0 aggregate whitewash of Shakhtar in their double-header.
This helped them seize the early initiative and despite narrowly losing to Inter Milan on their own turf on matchday 5, they still came to Spain with their destiny in their hands.
All they needed was a draw to secure qualification, and they would have rued their luck when Alassane Plea missed two good chances that he really should have scored.
Following their defeat, the Bundesliga lost their advantage and now relied on results elsewhere to go their way to secure qualification.
They would have been listening with bated breath for news to filter in from San Siro in the game between Inter and Shakhtar.
Ultimately, both sides played out a goalless draw in Italy, meaning that Monchengladbach finished level on points with the Ukrainians but progress by virtue of their superior head-to-head record.
#3 Real Madrid extend record-breaking run of group stage qualification
Real Madrid are, of course, the most storied club in the history of the European Cup / UEFA Champions League.
Their nine triumphs are more than anyone else has managed in the history of the competition and in many ways, the club have a special relationship with the tournament.
This is why the fact that Real Madrid were on the cusp of elimination from the group stage was almost impossible to believe, as a knockout round without Los Blancos was difficult to fathom.
The club currently holds the record for most qualifications from the group stage with 25, and 24 of those came consecutively since the 1997/98 season, which is a tournament record.
#2 Karim Benzema's brace sees him reach a century of Champions League group stage goals
Karim Benzema has been rejuvenated since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, putting to shame critics who opined that he could not be counted on to bear the goalscoring burden.
The Frenchman has seen a massive spike in his goalscoring returns in the last three campaigns and has continued from where he left off this season.
So far, the 32-year-old has eight goals from 14 matches in all competitions, with four of those coming in the Champions League.
His brace on matchday 6 saw him surpass the 50-goal mark for Champions League group stage goals, and his total of 51 is only behind the iconic duo of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo who lead the way with 71 and 67 goals respectively.
It also took Karim Benzema to 69 goals in the competition, just two behind former teammate Raul and Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski.
#1 Real Madrid go back to basics to secure progression
When Real Madrid won La Liga last season, they did so on the backdrop of a watertight defence that saw them concede just four goals in 10 consecutive victories post-lockdown.
However, they lost that solidity at the back in the opening stages of the current season that led to their struggles both domestically and on the continent.
The absence of talisman and captain Sergio Ramos made the situation more untenable but Zidane has been able to reorganise his rearguard to get the job done.
Real Madrid were back to their compact best in their weekend victory over Sevilla, and the 1-0 win had shades of their performance post-lockdown last season.
It was more of the same in the victory over Borussia Monchengladbach, with the returning Ramos helping the hosts limit the Germans to just one shot on target across the 90 minutes.
