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| Karim Benzema on the day of his presentation 12 years ago.CHEMA REY |
It is not easy to find a striker in Real Madrid‘s history who has played more games than Karim Benzema. In fact, only Santillana has played more times for the club (654) than Benzema‘s 559 appearances.
On July 9, marks exactly 12 years since the Frenchman joined Los Blancos, and it has certainly been a rollercoaster journey. The club placed him on the transfer list on a few occasions in his first few years, but still he remains in Madrid.
Benzema has emerged as Real Madrid’s major focal point in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale. He scored 30 goals in the 2020/21 season, giving him the second-highest goal total of his career.
Benzema also scored four goals for France at Euro 2020, outscoring Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann and finishing just one goal behind Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Kane, Romelu Lukaku, and Emil Forsberg.
Benzema will continue to be the team’s attacking leader whether Mbappe joins this summer or not.
Before the season starts, Real Madrid and Benzema should reach an agreement to renew his contract, which would see him extend his stay at the club until 2023.