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Rodrygo scored the first and last goals after 26 and 78 minutes respectively while Jude Bellingham netted the second in the 56th following a smart pass from Lucas Vazquez.
Despite the loss, Brest will also feature in the two-legged playoffs as an unseeded team in their first European campaign.
Real reached the Champions League knockout phase for the 28th consecutive year and extended their winning streak to five matches in all competitions.
Real finished in 11th place with 15 points from eight games, and will face either Manchester City or Celtic in the playoffs.
“Top eight was our objective but we didn’t do well in some games”, Rodrygo told Movistar.
“If we play City, it will be difficult as always but they are all tough opponents.”
Brest are 18th with 13 points and will meet either Paris St Germain or Benfica in the next round.
“We saw the difference between a team used to this competition and us. It would be a shame to be drawn against Paris,” Brest midfielder Pierre Lees-Melou told Canal+.
Without the suspended Vinicius Jr and despite the bravery of their opponents, Carlo Ancelotti’s Real side shook off the distraction of the raucous atmosphere in the small stadium.
Rodrygo opened the scoring with a cross-shot that went in off the post a minute after his close-range header had been saved by Marco Bizot.
Bellingham extended the lead when he scored into an open goal from Vazquez’s pass to finish off a counter-attack five minutes after Brest thought they had equalised only for Ludovic Ajorque’s effort to be ruled out for offside.
Rodrygo sealed the win with a volley after Bizot had kept out a Kylian Mbappe shot.
Mbappe’s run of scoring in the last five matches came to an end and the France striker was booed by the home fans.
He had a lot of chances but his first two efforts went over the bar after 12 and 15 minutes respectively and he was denied a couple of times by Bizot in the second half.
The French side also had chances but Mathias Pereira Lage’s free kick after five minutes and Kenny Lala’s shot from the edge of the box in the 63rd were saved by Thibaut Courtois.
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