Emmanuel Adebayor maintained his superb scoring record against Tottenham to lead Real Madrid to victory.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Real Madrid overpower 10-man Tottenham 4-0 in Champions League quarterfinal
- Emmanuel Adebayor scores twice with Andel Di Maria and Cristiano Ronaldo also netting
- Tottenham have Peter Crouch sent off in the first half for two sliding tackles
- The result leaves Real Madrid on target for a semifinal clash with rivals Barcelona
RELATED TOPICS
(CNN) -- Emmanuel Adebayor scored a header in each half, while Angel Di Maria and Cristiano Ronaldo added further goals, as Real Madrid overpowered 10-man Tottenham 4-0 in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal at the Bernabeu.
Real boss Jose Mourinho is attempting to become the first coach in history to win three Champions League titles with three different clubs, and he remains on course to achieve that feat after this comfortable victory.
The home side had the perfect start when they took the lead in the fourth minute -- Adebayor climbing above the Spurs defense to head home a Mesut Ozil corner, with goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes and Luka Modric getting in each other's way as they attempted to clear the ball on the goalline.
Tottenham's task was made even harder when England forward Peter Crouch was sent off in the 15th minute.
Booked early on for a sliding tackle, Crouch committed an almost identical foul on Marcelo to receive a second yellow card to leave the visitors with a mountain to climb.
And Real made Tottenham pay for Crouch's indiscipline with a second goal 11 minutes after the break, Adebayor converting another header from Marcelo's left-wing cross.
It continued former Arsenal striker Adebayor's superb scoring record against Tottenham, with the Togo international having now netted 10 goals in 10 games against Spurs.
Adebayor almost made it a hat-trick of headed goals in the 66th minute when he rose at the far post to meet Lassana Diarra's cross, but Gomes did superbly to parry the ball over the crossbar.
But, by now, the home side were piling on the pressure and they scored the goal of the night in the 72nd minute with Di Maria curled a delightful left-foot shot into the top corner.
And Real added a fourth with three minutes remaining when Ronaldo, who had been doubtful to start the match because of injury, scored from an acute angle, although his weak shot appeared to go straight through Gomes.
The result means Real Madrid now have one foot in the semifinals and a potential last four encounter with bitter rivals Barcelona in what could be one of the most anticipated pair of matches in European football history.
