Raul strike edges Real through as Zenit rue missed chance

REAL MADRID secured their progression and kept alive their outside hopes of winning Group H after Raul’s early strike earned them a 1-0 victory over BATE Borisov.

Madrid started the match knowing that, with Zenit St Petersburg being held to a goalless draw by already-qualified Juventus earlier in the evening, a victory in snow-covered Minsk would guarantee them a place in the last 16.

And the injury-hit Spanish champions could hardly have made a better start, with Raul putting them ahead inside seven minutes with what would prove to be the only goal of the game.