Karim Benzema has been chosen as the best player of the season in the Champions League, as announced by UEFA on Tuesday.
Benzema was decisive in Madrid's European title, the 14th in the European Cup, and the fifth in the French striker's career, all at the Bernabéu.
Benzema, who joined the French national team on Monday after Sunday's celebrations for the Champions League, was proclaimed the top scorer in European competition this season with 15 goals.
Ten of those goals were achieved in the knockout rounds.
He scored two hat-tricks in a row, in the second leg of the round of 16 against PSG at the Bernabéu and in the first leg of the quarterfinals against Chelsea, he continued in the second leg of this round with the goal in extra time against the English team, and against Manchester City he added a brace in the first leg at the Eithad and another penalty goal in the second leg to give Madrid qualification for the final in Paris.
He is also the great favorite to win the Ballon d'Or. "I think there are no doubts, it is very clear that Benzema had a spectacular year and ended up consecrating himself with the Champions League,
being fundamental from the round of 16 forward in all the matches.
I think there are no doubts this year”, Leo Messi expressed about this year's award.
🥇 UEFA's Technical Observer panel have named Real Madrid's Karim Benzema as the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League Player of the Season 👏👏👏@Benzema |
#UCL
– UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) May 31, 2022
The 34-year-old Madrid scorer is in third place among all-time Champions League scorers along with Pole Robert Lewandowski, with 86 goals, just behind Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo (140) and Argentine Leo Messi (125) .
The UEFA panel of observers also chose the ideal eleven of the season, in which Benzema is joined by his teammates Thibaut Courtois, chosen as the best player in the final, Luka Modric and Vinicius Junior, scorer of the winning goal against Liverpool .
The eleven is as follows: Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Antonio Rudiger (Chelsea), Virgil Van Dijk (Liverpool), Andy Robertson (Liverpool), Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City), Fabinho ( Liverpool), Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Kylian Mbappé (PSG), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) and Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid).
Vinicius Junior has been, in turn, chosen as the best young player of the campaign, in which he has distributed six assists and has scored four goals, including the one in the final.
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