This coming Saturday, Karim Benzema will take to the pitch that is so familiar to him at the Stade de France in Paris, and will make his fifth career appearance in the Champions League final.
Although he was born and raised in Lyon, he played many times at the National Stadium, where he also made his debut for the French national team more than 15 years ago.
In that game against the Austrian national team, Benzema scored the winning goal, when he was only 19, a talented striker who grew up in the youth department of Lyon alongside Maor Bouzaglo.
No one could then have guessed that the boy, who grew up in a poor immigrant family alongside eight brothers and sisters, would become one of the greatest actors in the world.
Benzema arrived at Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, but his signing went under the radar.
The reason: at the same time Real bought Cristiano Ronaldo for £ 80 million, which was a world record at the time, and also added Kaka, the gold ball winner in 2007. Benzema arrived at the Bernabeu after scoring 66 goals in the Lyon uniform, with which he won four consecutive championships Since leaving, this team has not won a title again.
Benzema.
Try to stop him, Photo: AFP
He was 21 when he had to fight for a place in the squad against Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain.
The move to Real Madrid was not easy for him, and there were days when he received contempt whistles from the team fans.
But it all belongs to the distant past.
Really far.
In his 13 seasons at Real, Benzema has established himself as one of the greatest players in the club's glorious history, and this season has become the second highest scorer in the club's history, with 323 goals in 604 games - equal to the legendary Raul who scored the same number of goals but did so in 741 games .
Only Cristiano Ronaldo is ahead of him on the historic list, with 450 goals, and this record in Nazma will probably no longer be broken.
But the final against Liverpool may be the game in which he will stand exclusively in second place.
Benzema is celebrating.
Gate machine, Photo: EPA
Benzema has always been a huge scorer, but when Ronaldo played for the team he was in his shadow.
He was Don Quixote's Sancho Pansa.
When the Portuguese left, right after the win over Liverpool in the 2018 final, Benzema became the senior striker.
The numbers?
Have jumped dramatically.
If the Frenchman finished the 17/18 season with only 12 goals, then the following season he has already scored 30.
A season worth gold?
But this season is arguably the best of his career.
Benzema has scored 44 goals in 45 games (his previous season record was 32), and he still has the final against Liverpool.
Yes, the same Liverpool in front of it scored in the final in Kiev when it won the Champions League for the fourth time.
If Real win again, Benzema will join an exclusive club of ten players who have won the title five times.
Karim Benzema.
Want two balls in one go, Photo: AFP
How amazing is Benzema's season?
After scoring five goals in the home leg, Benzema exploded in the knockout stages, with no less than ten goals in six games.
It started with the crazy hat-trick in the return match against PSG, and continued with a hat-trick against Chelsea.
Next came a winning goal in extra time against the Blues, a pair against Manchester City in England (including a penalty in Pananka), and a penalty in extra time against City, which lifted Real to the final.
If Benzema scores in the final against Liverpool, he will break the record set by Ronaldo five years ago.
A goal in the final also stabilizes him exclusively in third place in the all-time table of the Champions League.
Cristiano Ronaldo has 140 goals, Leo Messi 125. Benzema and Robert Lewandowski have 86 goals each.
Karim Benzema.
Will his composure make a difference ?, Photo: AFP
Equally important: a victory in the final will guarantee Karim Benzema another title, the most prestigious that exists on a personal level: the Golden Ball.
Undoubtedly, 2022 so far has been amazing for Benzema, and it could be even more amazing.
Ancelotti with Benzema.
Great appreciation from the actors, Photo: IPI
After winning the Spanish championship and being crowned the king of Spanish league goals, he is within touching distance of a fifth Champions League win and a Golden Ball win.
And let's not forget: on December 18, the day before he celebrates his 35th birthday, Benzema may also be a world champion.
This is the day when the World Cup final will be held.
Nadav Yaakovi, also on Twitter - nimidana @
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