The Madrid number nine had woven some of the most eye-pleasing goals in one of the wildest Champions League winning crusades, with pouncing headers, nutmegging toe pokes, wrong-footed volleys, precisional and daring penalties.
Sir Alex Ferguson was disheartened. Karim Benzema departed Lyon, his native club, for Real Madrid in the summer of 2009. Ferguson, the legendary Manchester United manager, wanted to recruit the then-20-year-old Benzema, who reminded him of Zinedine Zidane. Not because he was also French, but because of “the way he uses his body and the drive he had when the ball was at his feet.” Cristiano Ronaldo was departing Manchester United, and Benzema had the ability to fill the vacuum.
Benzema must be bitter about the Premier League. Todd Boehly would bite his tongue 14 years later. The Chelsea owner made a big prediction before of the Champions League quarter-final match against Real Madrid in Madrid. “Have faith, we’re going to win 3-0 tonight.” It was the now 35-year-old Benzema who celebrated in front of the Santiago Bernabeu crowd 21 minutes into the game. Vunicius forced Kepa Arrizabalaga into a save after Dani Carvajal’s chip pass broke through Chelsea’s defensive lines. All Benzema had to do was be in the right spot at the right moment and roll in the ball. The 11th consecutive goal against an English team in the competition.
However, it wasn’t all flowers and sunshine for the Frenchman when he first joined the nine-time Champions League champions in 2009. When it came to his fellow countrymen’s need to lose weight, Zinedine Zidane, who took over as Madrid’s sports director, didn’t mince words. Jose Mourinho openly chastised his team’s goal drought.
“If I can’t hunt with a dog, I’ll hunt with a cat,” Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho said when questioned about it. The obvious was added to the mix. Benzema was not Madrid’s star. He’d earned that reputation in Lyon. In Madrid, he competed with Gonzalo Higuain for the centre spot in a three-man attack. Cristiano Ronaldo would continue to be the star for 292 reasons. Gareth Bale’s €100.8 million transfer market-shaking move didn’t help. A sex-tape controversy involving France teammate Mathieu Valbuena didn’t help either. Benzema was not the club’s poster boy. Despite having played a crucial role in four Champions League winning seasons.
He had to take a step back from the club before he could stride forward. Ronaldo and Zidane both left their positions as head coach in the summer of 2018. Gareth Bale was already more out than in the squad. Benzema became the default pick for attacking up front. The increase in his touches in the attacking third demonstrates this. FBref claims that the figures have improved. From 592 in the 2017/18 La Liga season to 828 the following season. In the three that followed, the numbers were 918, 837, and 942. Benzema developed into a reliable ball carrier as well as a receiver. His carrying distance (in yards) increased from 1,654 in 2017/18 to 2583, 2704, 2603, and 2440 in the following seasons.
Benzema evolved from Zidane to Julen Lopetegui to Santiago Solari and back to Zidane. From an auxiliary attacking outlet to the offensive outlet, giving future galacticos of the white glitterati the tactics of the trade. Fede Valverde, Rodrygo, and Vinicius Jr. The Bernabeu was being renovated, and so was the team. Then there was Carlo Ancelotti, a Ballon D’Or, and ‘that’ Champions League season. It is critical to win one of them if you want to leave your mark on Los Blancos history. Benzema went for the fifth goal. A season with 15 goals, ten of which came in the playoffs. A hat-trick against PSG erased a 2-0 aggregate deficit.
Another came against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before deciding the match in extra time at the Bernabeu. He scored twice in a 4-3 loss to City at the Etihad before sealing an even wilder extra-time winner in Madrid.
The Madrid number nine had woven some of the most eye-pleasing goals in one of the wildest Champions League winning crusades, with pouncing headers, nutmegging toe pokes, wrong-footed volleys, precisional and daring penalties. From the Round of 16 to the final, the eventual champions led for less than 21% of the time during the knockouts.
The sparse amount of heat in his heatmap from the previous season to the one from 2017/18 reflects the hot entity Benzema has become for Real Madrid. A constant saviour. As he was last week at the Camp Nou, turning a 1-0 Copa Del Rey advantage in Barcelona’s favour into a 4-1 aggregate triumph for Real Madrid. In the 80th minute, Benzema became the first Real Madrid player since Ferenc Puskas in 1963 to score a Clasico hat-trick at Camp Nou. Even before the final whistle, the home supporters began leaving the giant of a stadium. It was quite clear what Sir Alex Ferguson saw in the scorer all those years.
