No one gave the Cypriot minnows a chance against the might of Jose Mourinho’s star-studded line-up, but Ivan Jovanvic’s men managed to hold their illustrious visitors for 74 minutes at the GSP Stadium.
However, their fairytale story was crushed by the second half introduction of Kaka and Marcelo, as the two substitutes inspired the Spanish side to victory.
Benzema was the first to strike in the final 16 minutes, converting a pinpoint cross from Kaka.
The provider then turned scorer as he made the most of a pull-back from Marcelo.
As expected, Jovanovic set his team out to frustrate and disrupt Real Madrid’s dynamic attacking football.
Things turned around In the last 15 minutes of play, when Kaka whipped a teasing cross into the box from the left and Benzema flung his body at the ball to send it flying past Chiotis via his forehead.
Eight minutes later it was 2-0. Marcelo burst into the box, darting past Paolo Jorge before picking out his Brazilian team-mate arriving late in the box, who planted a right foot shot into the back of the net.
In the 90th minute Benzema all but ended the tie as a contest as he made amends for his glaring miss in the first half.
Presented with an almost identical chance, this time courtesy of Ozil, he made no mistake, sweeping the ball home.
The nine-times European champions head back to the Bernabeu with three away goals and one foot in the semi-final.