Cristiano Ronaldo led Real Madrid to their 15th straight win after scoring a hard-earned 1-0 win against FC Basel in their UEFA Champions League group match on Wednesday at St. Jakob Park in Switzerland.

Ronaldo scored the lone goal of the match in the 35th minute after several close failed attempts early in the game, helping Real Madrid clinch the top spot in Group B, while denying FC Basel an outright qualification for the knockout phase.

Aside from leading his team to their club record 15th straight win, Ronaldo also netted the 71st Champions League goal of his career to tie Real Madrid legend Raul's tally. FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi now holds the scoring record with 74 Champions League goals.

Gareth Bale had a golden opportunity to score in the 13th minute off a corner kick from James Rodriguez, but Tomas Vaclik had an excellent save for Basel.

Vaclik then made another save five minutes, denying Ronaldo's first clear scoring opportunity of the match, but the FC Basel keeper could not handle the pressure in the 35th minute when Karim Benzema set up Ronaldo's goal.

With the win, Real Madrid improved to 5-0 in the Champions League this season, while FC Basel remained second in Group B with six points - two points ahead of Liverpool and Ludogorets Razgrad.

FC Basel, who played without striker Marco Streller and defender Ivan Ivanov, will look to earn a spot in the knockout stage when they collide with Liverpool in a crucial match on Dec. 9 at Anfield in England.

Meanwhile, Arsenal will advance to the knockout stages of this season's Champions League after scoring an impressive 2-0 win against German club Borussia Dortmund at Emirates Stadium in England.

Playing without star striker Danny Welbeck, Yaya Sanogo rose to the occasion as he fired an excellent shot that went under Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller to put Arsenal ahead, 1-0, 73 seconds into the match.

Alexis Sanchez then gave Arsenal more breathing room with a 57th minute strike. Borussia Dortmund had several chances to score an equalizer, but Arsenal's defense was solid for the majority of the match.

Arsenal are still second in Group D with 10 points - two points behind Borussia Dortmund. Arsenal will face Galatasaray in their final group game, while Borussia Dortmund will take on Anderlecht.

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