Champions League final: Benzema deserves Ballon d’Or – win or lose
Robin Bairner
- 27 May 2022 10:04 CDT
- 3 min read
Little over a year ago, there were question marks lingering over Karim Benzema’s Real Madrid future. Now there is little doubt that, having remained, he deserves to win the Ballon d’Or.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure from Los Blancos in 2018 left the club looking for their next superstar. They quickly found that they already had one in the form of the Frenchman, who has scored 92 La Liga goals in the four campaigns since the Portuguese departed.
At the age of 34, the 2021/22 season has brought the best out of Benzema.
The raw numbers are fantastic: 44 goals in 45 games, including a personal best tally of 27 in La Liga and a total of 15 in the Champions League, more than doubling his previous high. Throw in an additional 15 assists in all competitions plus the Primera Division title and Nations League success with France and there is a formidable cocktail of brilliance.
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Benzema is Real Madrid's talisman
What has been most remarkable about Benzema’s campaign, though, is the manner in which he has become a talisman in the manner of Ronaldo. Whenever his side have needed a player to come good in a clutch situation – and there have been ample of those situations in their run to the Champions League final – he has been the man to do it.
Trailing 2-0 on aggregate to PSG deep into their last-16 second leg, Benzema pounced on an error then scored two excellent goals in an incredible comeback that saw Madrid win 3-2.
He became one of the few players to score back-to-back Champions League hat-tricks with a superb treble against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, in which he showcased his aerial prowess by scoring two headers. Given this was an area of his game that was previously thought to be a weakness, this was no mean feat.
When the Blues rallied at the Bernabeu, of course he was on hand to get the winner in extra-time.
His contribution of three goals across two games against Manchester City in the semi-final was no less important. The Panenka he scored towards the end of the first leg to make the score 4-3 simply underlined the confidence he is bursting with presently in his game.
Liverpool fans would point to Sadio Mane as a contender for the Ballon d’Or, but his individual contribution to the side has not been as immense as Benzema’s has. The Frenchman has led this team in a Ronaldo-esque fashion.
And while the Reds have been bullying middleweights like Inter, Benfica and Villarreal in what has been a remarkably straightforward passage to the final, Benzema has been putting three hopefuls for the title in their place while continuing to score goals on the domestic front.
There is no doubt about it: Benzema deserves the Ballon d’Or.
