“Reality is not what is said on the internet”, released Karim Benzema, earlier this Thursday, during a gala organized by the Madrid daily Marca. A little phrase in the form of a pirouette, just to push back the announcement of his departure, which then seemed very likely? “Why should I talk about the future? I have a match on Saturday, a training session on Friday, so for the moment I am in Madrid”, had further indicated the international tricolor (97 caps, 37 goals) of 35 years, ardently courted by Saudi Arabia when he is out of contract at Real Madrid, where he has been playing since 2009. In the end, it may not have been just a pirouette. Quite the reverse.
According to information from… Marca, Benzema would in fact have left to stay for one more year in the colors of Casa Blanca. “Se queda”, can we read on the front page of the Spanish site, according to the established formula. If he is “grateful” for the attention paid to him in Riyadh, the former Lyonnais “wants to leave Madrid through the front door”, we are assured. The 2022 Ballon d’Or feels strong enough to shine in Madrid colors in 2023-24. Especially since “the (Saudi) offer will still be on the table” next year, as our Spanish colleagues imagine. The most successful player in the history of Real (25, tied with Marcelo) and second top scorer (353), Karim Benzema was the subject of a pharaonic offer to join the championship of Cristiano Ronaldo. We were talking about 100 M€ net per year.