For followers of the Saudi championship, this is a situation that could be expected. Recruited last summer by Al-Ittihad, Karim Benzema logically arrived as a big star of world football and holder of the Golden Ball. The Real Madrid striker, who still had good years ahead of him, had decided to join Saudi Arabia. But now, if Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at Al Nassr in a squad cut out for him, KB9 joined another Saudi giant who did not particularly need a scorer. Because the point of Al-Ittihad’s attack was occupied by Moroccan striker Abderrazzak Hamdallah, legend of the Saudi championship. A real goal machine in Saudi Arabia, the 33-year-old striker (112 goals in 108 matches with Al Nassr, his former club between 2018 and 2021) quickly made an impression with the Yellows and Blacks.
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Benzema tough, Hamdallah steady
Last summer, in his first season, he scored 25 goals in 31 league matches and largely contributed to the Saudi Arabian league title. Now very close to becoming the top scorer in the history of the Saudi Pro League, the Moroccan international would have to share the forefront of the attack with Karim Benzema. And while he is described as a player with a very strong character, we could question the cohabitation between the two men. Ultimately, it seemed to work quite well between the two men in a two-point system. But Hamdallah slowly ended up eclipsing Benzema. While the Frenchman continued his matches without scoring, the Moroccan continued to score goals and was in 3rd place in the scorers’ ranking (18 goals in 21 matches).
Read JT Foot Mercato: Benzema at war with his club
Enough to start to tense up Karim Benzema a little? This is what the Saudi press revealed. The former Real Madrid striker, unhappy with his use, pushed management to part ways with Nuno Espirito Santo at the start of the season. Under the orders of Marcelo Gallardo, his situation did not improve and a federal source revealed that Karim Benzema threatened to leave the club this summer, unhappy with the level of the team and its use. The departure of Gallardo would even be desired by the player. In the meantime, Benzema had also made controversial remarks to justify his performances. “I’m not the same Benzema from Real Madrid because it’s not the same matches, the same players… I need help on the pitch, I need a lot of things. I can’t win matches alone.” he said. And it could have ended there… but that was without counting on the player’s brother who then did it again.
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Attacks from both camps
“Karim Benzema, are you playing on the left now? It’s a crime ! It does not make sense. Football must be respected” he wrote on his Instagram account. A sentence which targeted Gallardo, but also Hamdallah holder at the forefront, which forces KB9 to shift to the left. And this did not please the agent and brother of Abderrazak Hamdallah at all. In an interview for Koorathe latter completely destroyed Benzema. “He wants him to leave maybe because he scores more than him! This is not professional behavior and it does not suit a great player like him. And we must not forget that it was the Frenchman who caused the departure of the coach. The old Nuno Santo, and now he wants to overthrow Gallardo and a few foreigners, including Hamdallah. Wasn’t Benzema the one who missed the penalty shootout? The same one who scored against his own goal at a time when he was expected to score against the opponent, the one who did not come to the team’s camp (in Dubai) pretending that there was a storm Who stopped him from traveling? He also took the number 9 of the team’s top scorer (Hamdallah) without asking permission, like every professional player in the world does. “He’s the same one who took Hamdallah’s penalties without asking permission, and he’s the one who took Romarinho’s armband without asking permission.”
These are striking declarations, relayed en masse by the Saudi press. And Benzema’s brother obviously did not fail to react in an Instagram post with several “laughing” emojis to mock the comments of the Moroccan striker’s agent. What makes both camps even more tense. In its pages, the media Goal Arabia also speaks of a war between the two players who have strong personalities. And while Al-Ittihad lost the Saudi Arabia Super Cup final and also seems to lose the championship, the end of the season will be electric. The future of Karim Benzema could well cause a lot of reaction during the next transfer window.
Pub. 04/14/2024 2:16 p.m. Updated 04/14/2024 3:05 p.m.
2024-04-14 12:16:34
#war #rages #Karim #Benzema #Abderazzak #Hamdallah
