Karim Benzema leaves Real Madrid | sports

After a week of great uncertainty, Karim Benzema (Lyon, 35 years old) has become a part of history at Real Madrid. On Sunday morning, the white club announced the departure of the French striker from the white team after 14 seasons. Everything indicated that his destination would be Saudi Arabia, from which he received an offer of one million dollars. The call was made less than seven hours after the last game of the tournament, against Athletic at the Bernabéu, where he will be able to say goodbye to the fans.

There has been great confusion in recent days about the French player. On a Thursday afternoon, his departure from Castellana was considered a matter of hours. In the club’s offices they admitted that the striker had an amazing economic offer; However, suddenly everything stopped. Real Madrid confirmed that Benzema had spent another year on his contract (he had renewed, he indicated, under a Ballon d’Or clause), and that afternoon, in an act in Brand, the French raised suspicions. He did not solve the problem with “I stay”, but said: “Reality is not the Internet.”

The last public words about his case came from Carlo Ancelotti, who on Saturday, at the press conference preceding the duel with Athletic, was vague at first and then pointed out: “He has a one-year contract, so we have no doubts here.” After 12 hours, the plot ended. Announcing the departure of Benzema, who, according to the club, received a letter of freedom.

His departure caused a major spasm in Real Madrid’s attack, which must now go on the market in search of nine key players when it least expected it. His idea months ago was to sign a replacement to accompany Benzema, but this unexpected departure changes all sports plans. Marco Asensio, the first rester of the attack, also announced this Saturday, the end of the merengue stage. Between the two of them, they have scored 42 goals this season: 30 for the Frenchman and 12 for the Balearic Islands. Joselu Mato, from Espanyol, is expected as a complement, although the hole is huge and Madrid demand a big game. On the other hand, giving up Benzema (12 million net), Asensio (about six), Hazard (part of the annual salary was provided by agreement) and Mariano (4.5) releases a significant part of the salary block.

Benzema’s farewell completes a turbulent and deeply frustrating campaign for the French player. Just a year ago, he won the league title and the Champions League with Real Madrid. He became a favorite for the Ballon d’Or, which he later won; And he was heading to the World Cup, the last of his great football ambitions, five years after he was expelled from the French national team. However, his career didn’t take long to wrap around the holidays. At first he suffered an injury that lasted for a month in September and, above all, due to a physical problem (“muscle strain”, as Madrid insisted) left him in the infirmary a month before the appointment in Qatar. When he landed in Doha, everything exploded in his face very quickly. A medical report issued by the French team (“touching the left quadriceps muscle”) prior to his debut led to his sudden departure from focus at dawn and he took his first regular morning flight to Madrid a few hours after learning of his injury.

“We are sure he will return to the level of last season,” Ancelotti insisted before leaving for the World Cup. However, his performance in 2023 barely took off after a few afternoons. Enough to reach 30 goals this season with Real Madrid (a number he has surpassed only in three of his 14 campaigns), but within a lower overall performance compared to previous sessions, when he took a step forward after the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo.

In recent days, Benzema has been seen as a lightweight on the court and elusive on the outside. He refused to speak even when he scored triplets in April and, as captain, did not make an official appearance either when the Copa del Rey was won or after the victory (4-0) that the Whites got in the second leg. Champions League semi-final against City His always special character has recently become more intense.

[Noticia de última hora. Habrá actualización en breve]

You can follow EL PAÍS Sports on Facebook And Twitteror register here to receive Weekly newsletter.