LIVERPOOL and Ajax extended their perfect winning records in the Champions League on Wednesday to advance into the round of 16 .

Liverpool cruised past Atletico Madrid 2-0 at Anfield and Ajax hit 10-man Borussia Dortmund with late goals in a 3-1 come-from-behind win in Germany.

The four teams with four straight wins — after Bayern Munich and Juventus sealed their places Tuesday — have already given the knockout lineup a nostalgic feel.

Ajax, Bayern and Liverpool combined to win all eight European Cup titles from 1971-78.

Liverpool had never opened a Champions League group stage with four wins, though it was rarely troubled against Atletico in Group B after Diogo Jota and Sadio Mane scored in the first 21 minutes. Atletico dropped to third in the group behind Porto, which was held to a 1-1 draw at last-place AC Milan.

Ajax is having a standout Champions League campaign after being ignored by the Super League founders from England, Italy and Spain when they lined up their ill-fated project several months ago.

The Netherlands champion made it back-to-back big wins over Dortmund, which had veteran defender Mats Hummels sent off in the first half.

Second-place Dortmund trails Ajax by six points in Group C with two rounds left. Dortmund is level on points with Sporting Lisbon, which routed Besiktas 4-0 and hosts the German side next Nov. 24.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid became the first team in Champions League/European Cup history to score 1,000 goals.

Karim Benzema coolly slotted home from close range in the 14th minute to give the Spanish giant the lead against Shakhtar Donetsk at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday evening. He added another in the second half.

The Frenchman’s goal also brought up the landmark goalscoring feat for Real Madrid, becoming the first team to reach the 1,000-goal mark.

German giant Bayern Munich is in second position, with 768 goals while Real’s rival Barcelona is in third position with 655 goals.

The club has had some prolific goal scorers over the years, none more so than Cristiano Ronaldo who, during his nine seasons in Madrid, became the leading scorer in the tournament’s history, including the 105 goals he scored for Real Madrid.

Benzema’s two goals Wednesday were his 74th and 75th Champions League goals, while club legend Raul has 66.

(SD-Agencies)