AP

Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo right gets in a shot during the Champions League group B soccer match between Liverpool and Real Madrid at Anfield, yesterday.

PARIS (AP): Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 70th Champions League goal and Mario Balotelli again failed to deliver as Real Madrid cruised to a 3-0 win at Liverpool yesterday to take complete control of Group B with a third straight win.

While Tuesday night's 40-goal bonanza never looked like being matched, there was still drama elsewhere as Arsenal scraped a 2-1 win at Anderlecht with late goals from defender Kieran Gibbs and forward Lukas Podolski, a peripheral player this season.

German sides continue to score for fun, as Borussia Dortmund romped to a 4-0 win at Galatasaray the day after Bayern Munich's magnificent 7-1 in Roma and Schalke beat Sporting Lisbon 4-3. Bayer Leverkusen also underlined the Bundesliga's fine form in Europe, beating Zenit St Petersburg 2-0.

By contrast, it was a bad night for Italian champion Juventus, who slumped to a surprise 1-0 defeat at Greek side Olympiakos.

At Anfield, all eyes were on Ronaldo but it was Karim Benzema,usually Ronaldo's favourite goal supplier, who out-scored his more illustrious teammate.

The France forward grabbed the other two goals in a devastating 18-minute first-half spell that silenced the home crowd.

Ronaldo's goal, a superbly-taken flick, put Madrid ahead in the 23rd minute, and took him to 20 goals in just 13 games this season. He also moved to within one goal of former Madrid star Raul Gonzalez's record tally in the Champions League.

He is one ahead of great rival Lionel Messi, who scored one and made one in Barcelona's 3-1 win against Ajax on Tuesday, before being taken off to rest him ahead of Saturday's massive game against Ronaldo's Madrid.

In Group A, Spanish champion Atletico Madrid lead Olympiakos on goal difference, with both teams tied on six points and Juventus lagging three points behind.

Swiss midfielder Pajtim Kasami fired the winner for Olympiakos past Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon in the 36th minute.

It was a goal feast for Atletico, with five different scorers in a 5-0 win against Malmo to show there is indeed life in the team's attack after Diego Costa, who has been brilliant for Chelsea since joining the London club in the offseason.