Al-Ittihad sent its list of players registered for the round of 16 of the
Asian Champions League and
Karim Benzema
is not on it
.
In this way, Marcelo Gallardo did not back down amid the clear differences that he maintains with the Frenchman and did not include him for the most important competition that the club is competing in.
Karim Benzema was late returning to training at Al-Ittihad and El Muñeco did not forgive him.
When he joined the squad, the club showed images of the Frenchman on the sports field, however the Argentine coach forced him to train separately.
According to the newspaper Marca, at that moment the Frenchman refused to retire and there was a tense moment between the coach and the player.
"The Argentine coach, firm in his conviction not to give privileges and in pursuit of justice within the locker room, ordered the former Real Madrid player to exercise alone after a first part of work with the group. However,
Karim refused to doing so, he became angry... and soon left the session
,” says the Spanish newspaper.
Now, the Saudi Arabian team will face Navbahor Namangan for the Asian Champions League.
The first leg will be played in Uzbekistan.
It must be remembered that a prior list is requested before the duels and that Asian Champions clubs can only select five foreign players for their matches.
And in this case
those chosen by the Doll were Hegazy, Fabinho, Kanté, Romarinho and Hamdallah.
The team is not in its best form and rumors indicate that Karim would have demanded high-level signings.
Due to the lack of new players, he began to be absent and in fact has not stepped on the field since December 26.
Despite the discontent, the transfer market passed and the Frenchman did not leave.
He did not go to the preseason in Dubai and has now returned to training after a month of absence.
But, for the moment, Gallardo does not count on him.
The most expensive player in history for Gallardo?
Al Ittihad del Muñeco would offer 235 million euros for Salah.
The possibility of Mohamed Salah moving to Al Ittihad was established in mid-2023, before Marcelo Gallardo takes charge of the team.
Then, the footballer's representative lowered the negotiation and explained that he had renewed his contract with Liverpool until 2025. It was commented that the Arab club was willing to pay 175 million euros for the Egyptian.
And the topic was reactivated this Monday, with the spread that the Tigers are going to make a huge offer for the 31-year-old footballer.
The club is preparing an offer of 235 million euros for the player, according to information released by The Athletic, an English site that is a reference.
If so, he would be the most expensive player in history, because he would surpass the current record, the transfer of Neymar from Barcelona to Paris Saint Germain, by 222 million, in 2017.
This would be what the English club would receive: for the footballer there would be 85 million euros per year.
In any case, this would be far from Cristiano Ronaldo's income at Al Nassr, which was calculated at 200 million euros annually, with advertising included.
In fact, the club greatly increased its income from social networks once it added the Portuguese.
Salah is currently injured, after participating with his country's team in the Africa Cup.
He has 14 goals in 20 Premier League games for Liverpool.
He is only surpassed by Erling Haaland, who has 16.