Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
Liverpool had a very difficult task ahead of them in the second leg in Madrid after losing the first leg tie 5-2 at Anfield, despite leading that match by two goals after just 20 minutes. To achieve the Miracle in Madrid they would have to win by three goals on the night and then win a penalty shoot out.
In a fairly even first half in Madrid both teams had their chances. Toni Kroos had a shot from 20 yards that flew inches over the bar. Liverpool’s Brazilian keeper Allison made a great save from close range from Junior. Liverpool had their chances too with Nunes shooting straight at Courtois in goals for Madrid. Mo Salah was constantly looking sharp and clipped a beautiful ball into Jota who should have made it 1-0 to the English side.
In the second half Madrid kept the ball a lot more and as the minutes rolled by you could see the Liverpool players knew that their slim chance were disappearing. In the 78th minute Madrid sealed the tie on the night with Junior coming in on the left slide before passing the ball over to Benzema who could not miss from six yards out. If Madrid had their shooting boots on it they could have added more goals but they had full control of the game and cruised into the quarter finals with a 1-0 victory on the night and 6-2 over the two legs.
There was a nice touch from Madrid at the end of the match when they played “You’ll never walk alone” with the Madrid fans giving the Liverpool team a standing ovation. This was probably more in recognition that this once great Liverpool side have pushed Madrid all the way in finals in Paris and Kiev in the past five years.
Liverpool need to look to the future and may have to take a few steps back before they take steps forward. It will take all their fighting spirit to make top four this season in the Premier League and be in this great competition next season.
For Madrid the dream lives on for making it an incredible 15 European Cup wins and who would bet against them. The Spaniards reward for the win is a place in the quarter finals against another English side Chelsea who overcame Borussia Dortmund.
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Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
This was a heavyweight European clash and it was never going to disappoint. The roof of the stadium nearly lifted off with the atmosphere at the start of the match. Liverpool started the game at a frantic pace and it looked like Madrid were going to get blown away.
It was wave of attacks down Madrid’s left hand side with Trent Alexander causing them lots of problems. It was a great ball over from Trent finished off with a beautiful flick from Nunez to make it 1-0 to Liverpool after just four minutes.
Liverpool were soon two up ten minutes later following an awful mistake from the Madrid goalkeeper. He miscontrolled a back pass and Salah was there ready to pounce to finish with the inside of his left foot.
Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
However Madrid refused to lie down. Vinicius Junior struck the ball low and hard past Allison from a tight angle just inside the 18 yard box to get one back from the Champions in the 21st minute.
Another awful goalkeeping error saw the match level again ten minutes before half time. Gomez cleaned up a Madrid attack and gave the ball back to Allison who tried to clear it but was a little too clever and hit off the back of the on-rushing Junior who turned to see the rebound land in the back of the net. Liverpool had some chances in the first half to get back ahead but Salah was not able to finish them off.
The second half started with Gomez giving away a free kick which seemed very harsh. Modric swung in a beautiful ball to the on rushing Eder Militao who finished with a thundering header into the back of the net to make it 3-2 to Madrid.
Less than ten minutes later it was 4-2 with a miss hit shot from Karim Benzema deflecting off the boot of Gomez to leave Allison with no chance. A night that started so well for Liverpool was turning into a living football nightmare.
On the 67th minute Madrid caught Liverpool on the break. The ball was played through to Benzema who had too much space and time in the box before settling himself to smash the ball into the back of the net to make it 5-2 to the visitors.
The Liverpool fans stayed to the end and clapped the Madrid players off the famous Anfield pitch. It was the first time in Liverpool’s long European history that any team have managed to score five goals against them at Anfield.
Liverpool were sloppy in midfield and at the back and got convincingly punished for their mistakes by the European and World champions. Liverpool will need a footballing miracle in Madrid in three weeks’ time. For Madrid they keep on marching on in relentless fashion. It will take a special team to stop them lifting the title in Istanbul in June.
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Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
A crowd of 34,000 was packed into the stadium to witness a great performance from the Ukrainian team, who are in many ways playing on emotion and heart as much as anything.
Shakhtar never stopped running and never stopped putting pressure on the Madrid defence, not giving them time to breath on the ball.
The stand-out player on the pitch was the Shakhtar number 10 Mudryk, an out and out winger with loads of pace and energy who tormented the Madrid defence all night.
However for the first 20 minutes Madrid had control of the match. Benzema had a strike saved and Rodryo had a chance to put Madrid ahead but Trubin pushed it wide of the post.
The second half came alive straight after the kick off with the home team making the break through. Oleksandr Zubkov pulled away from Mendy and headed the ball past Madrid’s second keeper Lunin to make it 1-0 to Shakhtar.
Shakhtar almost doubled their lead shortly after when a fumble from the Madrid keeper dropped to Traore who hit the Cross bar from close range.
Madrid brought Junior, Modric, Alaba and Asensio on to really put the pressure on but it looked like the Ukraine Champions were going to hang on for an unlikely victory.
However in the 95th minute Kroos crossed a ball in and the Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger was very brave to get a flick on it to put it in the back of the net. The keeper came steaming out and clattered into Rudiger who had just managed to get to the ball a spilt second earlier. Following the goal and collision Rudiger stayed down for several minutes to receive treatment.
The point secures Madrid’s place in the last 16 of the Champions League while Shakhtar will battle it out with Leipzig for the remaining place in Group F’s last two matches.
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]]>The Champions League gets back underway this week following the international break with several sides in desperate need of victories to spark their European campaign into life.
Group A
Napoli will travel to Amsterdam looking to maintain their perfect start against an Ajax side smarting from their late defeat against Liverpool. The Italians have arguably been the standout side in the competition so far and can take a giant leap towards qualification with a victory in the Dutch capital.
Elsewhere it will be a first ever meeting of Liverpool and Rangers at Anfield with both sides needing wins for different reasons. Liverpool will look to Europe to gain some form after stuttering in the league while Rangers are yet to get off the mark in their return to the top table.
Group B
Club Brugge have arguably been the biggest surprise package in the tournament so far and will look to claim another scalp when they host Atletico Madrid.
The Belgians have made a perfect start and another victory would open a big gap between themselves and third place in the group.
Porto will be aiming to get off the mark after two defeats in their first two games when they host Bayer Leverkusen. The Germans are struggling domestically but did defeat Atletico last time out so they’ll have some belief travelling to Portugal.
Group C
Bayern Munich have once more made an impressive start to a Champions League group stage and will get the action underway on Tuesday when they host Viktoria Plzen in the early kickoff.
The German champions defeated their two biggest group rivals in September and will be expecting to dispatch of their Czech visitors to maintain their lead in the group.
Inter Milan meanwhile will host Barcelona in what is the biggest game of the week.
Both sides came up short when facing Bayern and both defeated Plzen so they’ll view these two upcoming games as the key to deciding who will follow Julien Nagelsmann’s side into the last 16.
Group D
Sporting are another side who have impressed, taking six points in what looked the most open group on paper.
They travel to Marseille on Tuesday who desperately need a win if they are to stand any hope of reaching the next round. The French side have started well in the league but have struggled badly in Europe in recent years and will be desperate to give the home support something to cheer.
Tottenham will visit Eintracht Frankfurt in the other Group D clash looking to bounce back from their weekend defeat to bitter rivals Arsenal and take steps towards qualification. It will be far from easy against the Europa League winners who will also have their sights on the latter stages.
Group E
AC Milan head what has been a very tight and unpredictable Group E and will host Chelsea on Wednesday night with injuries to key players disrupting their preparation.
French pair Mike Maignan and Theo Hernandez will miss the clash against Graham Potter’s men who needs points themselves having stuttered in their opening two games.
Salzburg are unbeaten thus far but have also yet to win but a victory over Dinamo Zagreb at home would put them in good stead heading into the turn in the group. The Croatians will be aiming for another surprise victory having stunned Chelsea last month.
Group F
Holders Real Madrid have made a serene start to their title defence and host Shakhtar on Wednesday looking to maintain their 100% record.
The visitors have also made a good start to the group and look favourites to join their hosts in the next round.
Celtic will travel to Leipzig looking to build on their credible draw against Shakhtar last time out and will need to get something to keep their qualification hopes alive as will the bottom side from East Germany.
Group G
Erling Haaland has been in utterly sensational form this season with 17 goals so far and the visit of FC Copenhagen will offer the Norwegian another chance to add to his tally.
The Danes picked up a draw against Sevilla three weeks ago but will be up against a Manchester City side brimming with confidence after sticking six goals past their local rivals Manchester United.
Sevilla have made a terrible start in La Liga and need to get something at home to Borussia Dortmund to avoid being cut adrift in terms of qualification. Victory for the Germans will see them move five points clear of their hosts with just three games to play.
Group H
Benfica have been another surprise outfit this season, winning nine of ten games in all competitions and two 100% records will go head to head in this group when they host PSG.
The Lisbon side claimed a stunning victory away at Juventus last time out and even a point here at home to the French champions will boost their chances of repeating what they did last year when they knocked Barcelona out in the group stages.
Juventus will be looking to avoid the same fate as the Spaniards and nothing less than three points against Maccabi Haifa in Turin will do, with manager Max Allegri under all sorts of pressure.
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Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
Real Madrid won an impressive 14th European Cup / Champions League after 1-0 victory over Liverpool in Paris.
UEFA’s showpiece final was delayed by over half an hour due to the “late arrival of fans”, as per the announcement made inside of the Stade de France. While technically true, the delay was indeed a direct result of Liverpool fans arriving late into the stadium, the implication from the announcement was that it was the fault of the fans arriving late at the stadium. This masks the real story and the extent of the issues with poor over-the-top policing as well as ticketless fans trying to enter the stadium in the hours before the scheduled start of the prestigious final.
Little has actually been said that UEFA actually made a good decision to delay the match to allow more of the Liverpool fans with real tickets to enter the stadium, especially given the amount of pressure from TV companies to stick to committed schedules.
However UEFA and the French Police were very quick to pin the blame for the embarrassing delay squarely on Liverpool fans with fake tickets, whilst taking many days after the event to acknowledge that firing tear gas into large crowds containing a mix of ticketless fans and families of fans with actual tickets is awful policing.
It was interesting that the issues with tear gas and large empty spaces inside the stadium before kick-off only affected Liverpool fans and not the 20,000 Real Madrid fans. While there were long queues for Madrid fans to enter there was not the same chaos as there was at the Liverpool end.
This may be explained by the fact that there were significantly more fans trying to enter the Liverpool sections with fake tickets or without tickets than other areas. Perhaps it was also due to the reputation that Liverpool have earned over the years – hundreds of Liverpool fans illegally entered Champions League Finals in Madrid in 2019 and Athens in 2007. Indeed in Athens the Greek authorities actually decided to close the gates around an hour before kick-off and prevented hundreds of fans with actual tickets from entering because the stadium was already full.
However just because a team brings a number of passionate fans who will try anything to see their team play in an important match doesn’t excuse the awful treatment that all fans of the club have to endure while trying to enter the stadium.
It will be interesting to see what UEFA’s independent investigation into what happened finds and what changes are put in place for future events.
In terms of the match itself…
Liverpool got off to the better start and really pressed Madrid high up the pitch not giving them a chance to breathe. Thibaut Courtois got his fingers burned a few times in the first half but he was in great form making a number of stops. The most impressive was following a low shot from Mane – the Madrid keeper produced a world-class save going down swiftly to his right to get a strong touch on it to knock it on to his post.
That was going to be the story of this final for this Liverpool side though. With Fabinho and Thiago starting after winning their fitness battles they were controlling the midfield in the first half but they could just not get the breakthrough.
Madrid thought they had taken the lead just before halftime. Two minutes before the interval Karim Benzema poked the ball home only for VAR to rule it out for offside.
Madrid kept their nerve at the start of the second half and after around 60 minutes Valverde drove the ball into the box from the right-hand side for Vinicius to ghost in at the far post and prod the ball into the Liverpool net to make it 1-0 on the night to Madrid.
Klopp made his changes bringing Keita and Firmino on and the Brazilian made a difference straight away. He pulled a ball right back to the edge of the area and Keita should have done a lot better. Courtois was superb, flying to his right to keep out Salah’s right foot curler just clearing the top corner of his net for a Liverpool corner.
First the Belgian got down low to keep out Jota’s effort and then he produced a strong arm to turn a Salah strike behind. It was a man of the match performance and it was Madrid’s night, a 14th title lifted by club captain Marcelo.
With 23 shots and 9 on target to Madrid’s 3 shots and 1 on target Liverpool can count themselves a bit unlucky.
But as Klopp said after the match
“To win big sometimes you have to lose big.”
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Antonio Rudiger has been linked with a move to Real Madrid in the summer after revealing he will be leaving Chelsea.
Thomas Tuchel announced that the German defender would be leaving on a free transfer after Chelsea’s victory over West Ham. The manager expressed his frustration after the decision was made.
“Without the sanctions we would at least be able to carry on fighting, but our hands are tied
He is a key figure and will stay that way until the end of the season. But it is disappointing. We will miss him a lot. He gives courage in the dressing room.”
Rudiger has played a pivotal role in the Blues’ defence this season. His pace and ability to cover ground quickly allow the full backs to attack without the worry of leaving too much space behind them. He has helped progress the ball too with both his passing and dribbling capabilities and scored five times for his team in all competitions this season.
One of the 29-year-old’s best performances this season came in the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-final against Tottenham.
Rudiger scored the only goal in the game after he headed home from a corner that was misjudged by Pierluigi Gollini. The centre-back won possession six times throughout the game, including three interceptions, and won 50% of his duels.
He also completed a staggering 96.9% of his passes while creating one big chance in the game and he was successful in his one attempted dribble.
A move to the Spanish capital has reportedly been the chosen destination for Rudiger, but nothing has been confirmed as of yet.
The two main central defenders for Real Madrid this season have been David Alaba and Eder Militao. Here is how Rudiger compares to both defenders and Barcelona’s Ronald Araujo, who recently extended his contract at the club.
All three La Liga defenders tackle more efficiently than Rudiger, but the German wins the ball more in the midfield third whereas the others win it more frequently in the defensive third. Only Araujo (75.9%) however has better success when tackling attackers who are dribbling than Rudiger (64.9).
Rudiger has very similar statistics when it comes to tackles, interceptions, and clearances to Alaba and Araujo, but Militao is clear in all three areas. The Brazilian although has made the most errors leading to shots from the opposition.
All four players have very similar pass completion rates, with Alaba leading the pack by a mere 1.7%. Despite his impressive passing stats, Rudiger’s 88.1% completion rate is the lowest of the pack due to less success when attempting long passes.
Both Araujo (76.3%) and Militao (74.2%) are more successful when it comes to aerial battles than Rudiger (67.8).
Rudiger has also been linked to PSG and Manchester United along with Real Madrid. With only a few games remaining in the season, it is likely that Rudiger’s future club will be announced once the league campaign is finished.
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]]>The Champions League quarter-finals got underway this week with Karim Benzema grabbing a hat-trick to put Real Madrid in the driving seat in their tie with holders Chelsea.
Elsewhere Liverpool have one foot in the semi-finals after beating Benfica while Manchester City and Villarreal edged out Atletico Madrid and Villarreal respectively.
Manchester City 1-0 Atletico Madrid
This fixture was a clash of styles as the possession-heavy approach of Pep Guardiola came up against the defensively resolute Diego Simeone and his gladiatorial approach to winning.
The game played out as expected with Atletico camped in and allowing City to have control of the ball and play in front of the Spaniards. In turn, Atletico had hoped to catch City on the break but no decent opportunities truly presented themselves.
The Citizens huffed and puffed for the majority of the first hour with Jan Oblak only troubled sporadically before Kevin De Bruyne scored what proved to be the game’s winning goal, finishing confidently after being found in the box by Phil Foden.
City were unable to add a second but will take a lead to Spain and know that at some point, Atletico will have to come out and attack, which should open up space on the counter.
Simeone will not be devastated by the result as the tie is still very much alive. A greater attacking threat will be required next Wednesday however if Atleti are to spring a surprise.
Benfica 1-3 Liverpool
Liverpool look well placed to continue their pursuit of an unprecedented quadruple after claiming a two-goal victory in Lisbon.
The Reds started on the front foot and played with an intensity that their Portuguese counterparts were struggling to match.
It was therefore no surprise when Jurgen Klopp’s side went ahead. Ibrahima Konate powered home his first goal for the club to set the Merseysiders on their way.
Sadio Mane would double the lead in the first after a wonderful ball from Trent Alexander-Arnold picked out Luis Diaz, who remained composed to head across to Mane to tap into the empty net.
Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita both had further opportunities as Liverpool looked to win the tie in one leg but Benfica goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos performed admirably to keep it at two.
Benfica were afforded a lifeline early in the second half when Darwin Nunez pounced on a Konate error to calmly slot home and ramp up the atmosphere in the Estadio Da Luz.
Liverpool lost their way a bit and struggled to hold on to the ball as the hosts pressed but Diaz inflicted a damaging blow late on as Naby Keita’s deflected through ball found the former Porto man who rounded Vlachodimos to restore the two-goal cushion.
The Reds are now firm favourites to advance to the final four with Benfica needing a huge performance at Anfield.
Chelsea 1-3 Real Madrid
In what was the most eye-catching tie of the round on paper, Karim Benzema lit up the midweek action with a hat-trick for the second Champions League game in a row as Real Madrid left Chelsea on the brink of elimination.
Benzema was on form from the off. A brilliant backheel allowed Federico Valverde to play the ball into Vinicius Junior, who smacked the crossbar with his effort.
If this was a warning for Thomas Tuchel’s side, they did not heed it. In the 21st minute, Benzema played a lovely one-two with Vinicius who clipped the ball back for the onrushing Frenchman to score a glorious header past Edouard Mendy.
La Liga’s top scorer would repeat the trick just minutes later, finding space in the area to head Luka Modric’s cross into the bottom corner. It was such a difficult chance to convert but Benzema is operating on another level at the minute.
Chelsea did manage to get back into the game just before half-time with Kai Havertz powering a header past Thibaut Courtois to halve the deficit.
Any hopes that the goal may inspire a rousing comeback were dissipated almost instantly in the second as a mistake from Mendy was not dealt with at all well by Antonio Rudiger allowing Benzema the simple task of rolling it into an empty net from 25 yards.
After the difficulty of the opening two goals, the striker will have been surprised yet delighted at just how easy the third presented itself.
Chelsea tried to get back into the game with substitute Romelu Lukaku spurning a glorious chance by heading wide from six yards and Courtois saving brilliantly to deny Cesar Azpilicueta.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side did enough to hold on and look well placed to bring Chelsea’s tenure as European champions to an end, with Tuchel declaring the tie over in his post-match press conference.
Villarreal 1-0 Bayern Munich
This was the surprise result of the round, without question. Villarreal are relative novices at this level, with this being their first quarter-final in 13 years.
This did not stop the Yellow Submarines from producing a display full of energy and confidence to give themselves a slender advantage heading into next week’s second leg in Germany.
Former Bournemouth winger Arnaut Danjuma struck the only goal of the game in the eighth minute, diverting Dani Parejo’s effort past Manuel Neuer in the Bayern goal.
In what was an entertaining game with chances at either end, it will be the Spaniards who feel they left possibly a victory by a greater margin behind in this once.
Gerard Moreno almost scored from 45 yards out with Neuer stranded but his effort curled wide while Danjuma and Pedraza both spurned great chances to add to the worries for Julian Nagelsmann.
Francis Coquelin also saw his cross loop over Neuer and into the net only for VAR to catch the former Arsenal midfielder offside.
Bayern had chances too with Kingsley Coman twice going close but Nagelsmann will be relieved that the deficit is only one with a home return leg to come.
Bayern have done this before in losing or drawing first legs, only to smash the opposition once the action gets to the Allianz Arena.
Villarreal will be hoping to buck the trend and add another former winner to the list of clubs they have vanquished this season.
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PSG prepare to face Real Madrid on Tuesday in the Round of 16 in the Champions League as the Parisians continue their search for European glory.
All eyes will be on Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, and Neymar as PSG’s ‘Big Three’ will be expected to live up to the expectations of their fans.
Mbappe to Madrid?
The French forward is coming towards the end of his current contract at PSG and has been linked with a move to Real Madrid on a free deal in the summer. A move to Madrid seems inevitable for Mbappe as he grew up idolising Cristiano Ronaldo and learning about the impact of Zinedine Zidane.
When asked about a potential move to the Spanish capital by Amazon Prime, Mbappe said:
“Have I made a decision over my future? No.
“Playing against Real Madrid changes a lot of things. Although I have freedom to do what I want in this moment, I am not going to speak with a rival or do that type of thing.
“I am concentrating on winning against Real Madrid. And then we will see what happens.”
The 23-year-old has played against Madrid in the Champions League on three occasions already. When the sides met in the Last 16 during the 2017/18 season, Mbappe failed to score in both games but he scored against Los Blancos in the group stages two seasons later.
Mbappe played a pivotal role in getting PSG through the group stages this season. He scored four times and picked up four assists in the six group fixtures. He has also scored in back-to-back games ahead of the first leg.
Messi: El Classico’s king
After leaving Barcelona at the end of last season, Madrid fans would have hoped to wait a bit longer before having to face the prospect of Messi again. The Argentine is the all-time top scorer in El Classico history, scoring 26 goals against Real Madrid over the years. In 45 games against the opponents, he also assisted his teammates 14 times.
Despite his lengthy career at Barcelona, Messi only faced Madrid once in the Champions League beforehand. In the 2010/11 season, Messi’s two goals made the difference between the two sides as Barcelona beat their rivals 3-1 on aggregate.
One of the goals he scored became an iconic Champions League goal. Sergio Busquets laid the ball off to Messi around the halfway line and the winger dribbled past five Real Madrid players, including now teammate Sergio Ramos, before slotting the ball past Iker Casillas in goal.
Messi has scored five times in the competition this season and enters the game on good form, being directly involved in four goals in his last three games.
Neymar’s redemption
After the recent release of his documentary, Neymar: The Perfect Chaos, it is clear that Neymar is determined to win the Champions League at PSG.
The Brazilian’s time in Paris has been underwhelming despite the accolades he has achieved. He has struggled with injuries, often around the knockout rounds of the competition, and has failed to win the trophy that has eluded him since leaving Barcelona.
After wanting to leave the French capital, a move that never came to fruition, fans began to turn on Neymar and questioned his commitment to the club. This changed during the 2019/20 season. After the campaign was temporarily halted due to the Covid pandemic, the 30-year-old returned in brilliant physical condition. In his documentary, it showed the work he put in during the break, and club captain Marquinhos described how he was levels above everyone else at training when they prepared for the Champions League quarter-finals.
Neymar was influential in helping PSG progress to the final of the tournament that season before Bayern Munich took the spoils in Lisbon. The winger was visibly heartbroken at full-time but the addition of Messi, Ramos, and Nuno Mendes can help PSG achieve European glory this season.
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]]>Karim Benzema welcomed fans back to the Santiago Bernabeu in style as his hat-trick secured an emphatic 5-2 win against Celta Vigo.
Real Madrid youngsters Vinicius Jr and Eduardo Camavinga completed the goal scoring in Real Madrid’s first game at their home stadium in 560 days.
Benzema’s first goal showed his current form as he hit Federico Valverde’s cutback into the ground and in off the crossbar, making it unstoppable for Matias Dituro in goal. Any other striker would have struggled to finish the chance as the 33-year-old did but he seems to be inevitable at this moment in his career.
The Frenchman’s second was a goal you would usually associate with his national compatriot Olivier Giroud. Miguel Gutierrez sent in a cross towards the back post as Benzema guided the header back across the goal to equalise for the second time.
The forward then assisted Vinicius Jr with a through ball to put the Brazilian in behind and one-on-one with the goalkeeper with the winger scoring his fourth goal in as many league games.
The Brazilian then repaid Benzema as he won a penalty for the striker to complete his hat-trick. He smashed the ball into the top left corner and ended any hope of a Celta Vigo comeback. His goals also meant that Real have extended their unbeaten record in the league to 22 matches.
This was Benzema’s sixth hat-trick for Los Blancos and his first since the 2018/19 season where he bagged three goals against Athletic Bilbao.
The Frenchman has now scored five times and assisted his teammates on four occasions as Madrid sit on top of the table before the start of their Champions League campaign.
Extra pressure was placed on the forward this season as he was given the captain’s armband by Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti following the transfer of Sergio Ramos to Paris Saint-Germain. He has taken well to the role and is proving to be a good role model for the younger members of the squad.
Real Madrid will face Valencia in their next league game as they look to continue their good start to the season.
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]]>Karim Benzema has been called up to the Les Bleus for the first time in over five years ahead of the upcoming European Championships.
The French National Team manager Didier Deschamps said:
“We met, we spoke at length, I then thought very hard and came to make this decision.
I needed this chat, he needed this chat. As national team boss, I have always looked beyond my personal case. My responsibility is important, but it is bigger than me.”
Benzema’s international career seemed to be over in 2015 when the striker was accused of playing a role in the blackmailing and sex tape scandal of former teammate, Mathieu Valbuena.
Deschamps left Benzema out of his Euro 2016 squad which led the striker to lash out at his manager, claiming the 52-year-old “bowed to the pressure of a racist part of France.” The relationship between the player and manager was at an all-time low.
Despite France reaching the finals at that Euro’s and winning the 2018 World Cup, fans still wanted to see Benzema in a French shirt one last time as they begged the manager to forgive him.
One French player who may not be too pleased with Benzema’s inclusion is Olivier Giroud. In March 2020, Benzema said “you don’t compare Formula 1 with go-karting, and I am being nice” in response to a comparison to the towering forward. Giroud is close to breaking Thierry Henry’s record as France’s all-time top goal-scorer but his chances could now be hindered.
The 33-year-old has been brilliant for Real Madrid in the past three seasons and has stepped up for the club since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo.
He has scored 65 league goals in his last three campaigns and helped Los Blancos win the 2019/20 title. Only Lionel Messi has more direct goals and assists in La Liga this season than Benzema and he has scored six times in the Champions League this season.
France was drawn into the ‘Group of Death’ as current champions Portugal and 2014 World Cup winners Germany were also put in Group F, along with Hungary. The presence and potential goal contributions of Benzema could be vital to breaking down defences featuring the likes of Ruben Dias, Joao Cancelo, Niklas Sule, and Willi Orban.
His last appearance for the national team was in October 2015, where he scored twice against Armenia in a French team that featured Lassana Diarra and Patrice Evra. It has been reported that Benzema will wear the number 19 shirt for the tournament as France go into the tournament as favourites.
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