Karim Benzema: The Best Center Forward of his Generation?

In 2018, after their millionth Champions League win, Cristiano Ronaldo left Real Madrid, for Italian shores. The big question was how were Real Madrid going to replace their all-time top scorer. Who were they going to buy? The answer was nobody. Florentino Perez like always, knew something the rest of the world didn’t. He knew Los Blancos didn’t need to replace Ronaldo.

The forgotten man, who quite literally waited in the wings for Ronaldo, was ready to step up. I highly doubt whether Perez knew we would witness one of the best four-year stretches by a 31-year-old striker we have ever seen. Yet he still put his faith in him, and the Frenchman repaid it tenfold. I am of course talking about Karim Mostafa Benzema.

If you were to say pre-2018 that Benzema was arguably the greatest striker of his generation, you would be laughed at. He had finished that season with just 5 league goals. Even though he scored in a Champions League final and had won 4 of the last 5 Champions Leagues, the Frenchman would hardly be mentioned as a key factor in these wins. 

The likes of Luis Suarez, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robert Lewandowski, and Sergio Aguero were all mentioned as better strikers than the Frenchman, even with all his accolades. His finishing was especially mocked and playing second fiddle to Ronaldo didn’t help as the Portuguese garnered all the accolades. But as soon as he left, that goalscoring void was filled by Benzema. So much so that the Frenchman became Madrid’s second-highest goal scorer. Pretty impressive for someone who couldn’t finish.