Benzema on his departure from Madrid: "It was a good time to try a new change in my life"

This summer, Karim Benzema left Real Madrid to join Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia. The legendary French striker followed the same route as Cristiano Ronaldo, who, when he signed for Al Nassr, raised many concerns. Now, his former Santiago Bernabeu team-mate is delighted with his decision. He expressed this in an interview with the official media of the championship.

"I am very happy and proud of everything I have done and won with Real Madrid. But I think I needed an important change in my life after everything I had already won," said Benzema. The Frenchman, in Spain, won five Champions Leagues, five Club World Cups, four European Super Cups, four La Liga titles, three Copa del Rey and four Spanish Super Cups. He was key especially in the European campaigns closest to his departure.

“This country welcomed me with open arms. I feel the love of the people here and obviously this makes me feel happy and I try to return this love on the field of play. There is a lot of passion here and I am happy with the level of play. I am really surprised by the level in Saudi Arabia because in Europe we don’t see many football matches from here. But now they are seeing each other more and more because of the big names they have signed,”

“It is also a Muslim country. when you travel there (Mecca), you are in the truth. In truth for a Muslim. You feel good and pure. It is simply exceptional. It is something that I wish all Muslims could go there one day. That’s where the truth is. It does a lot of good. On and off the field I feel good. “It’s what I feel,” explained Karim.

 

October 11, 2023