Gareth Bale hit a hat-trick as Real Madrid beat Kashima Antlers 3-1 to cruise into the 2018 Fifa Club World Cup final.
Real have won the last two Club World Cups (in 2016 and 2017) after winning back-to-back Champions League titles, and a third European Cup triumph earlier this year has allowed them the opportunity to try and claim a hat-trick of Fifa prizes.
There have been plenty of changes as Real since then, with Los Blancos on to their second manager after Zinedine Zidane's shock summer exit: Santiago Solari is now in the dugout after impressing as caretaker following Julen Lopetegui's sacking.
Real entered the competition at the semi-final stages with a clash against AFC Champions League winners Kashima Antlers on Wednesday afternoon, and duly made light work of the Japanese side in Abu Dhabi.
Wales forward Bale opened the scoring just before the break, side-footing home, and then added two more in quick succession early in the second half to put the Spanish giants 3-0 up.
He scored his second after 53 minutes and completed his treble two minutes later with another neat finish to become the third player in Club World Cup history to score a hat-trick.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suarez also managed the feat, and now Bale and Real can look ahead to Saturday's final against Al Ain as they look to end 2018 in style after a difficult start to the season.
Yasushi Endo scored a consolation goal for Kashima 12 minutes from time, but it was not enough to trouble Real's resolve.
Additional reporting by the Press Association.
.jpg?w=600)
