In his first full-season as coach, Real Madrid recorded a club-record 16th consecutive La Liga victory by defeating Espanyol 2–0 away on 18 September 2016, overtaking their previous record of 15 set in 1960–61 and equalling the record of consecutive La Liga wins of Barcelona set in 2010–11. On 18 December, Real Madrid defeated Japanese club Kashima Antlers 4–2 in the final of the 2016 FIFA Club World Cup, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring a hat-trick.