Karim Benzema: Manuel Pellegrini hails Ballon d’Or winner and Real Madrid forward as the ‘complete player’

Real Betis manager Manuel Pellegrini believes that Karim Benzema deserved his 2022 Ballon d’Or award for being “a complete player”.

The French forward has been in exceptional form for at least the past two years and has been increasingly influential for Real Madrid. Last season he won the Champions League and La Liga, making decisive contributions along the way as he notched 44 goals in 46 club appearances, his best-ever haul.

While his former Real Madrid colleague Cristiano Ronaldo and erstwhile Barcelona opponent Lionel Messi appear to have started their declines, Benzema continues to improve, and Pellegrini believes it was right to award him the Ballon d’Or.

Pellegrini was manager of Real Madrid in 2009/10, the season that Benzema first arrived at the club, and while the Chilean managed only a short stop in the Spanish capital before moving elsewhere, including a Premier League-winning stint at Manchester City a few years later, he acknowledged how impressive Benzema’s longevity has been.

“I was lucky to arrive at Real Madrid in the same year as he did. Staying at Real Madrid for 10 years as a key player is not easy,” he continued.

Benzema has scored 328 goals in 615 appearances for Real. He held off a challenge from Gonzalo Higuain to become the first-choice striker, and also collected a host of awards.

He has won La Liga four times, and the Copa del Rey twice. He also has won the Champions League five times with his club.

After spending some time away from the French national team he has successfully made a comeback into the squad under Didier Deschamps, and boasts a Nations League winner’s medal.

Following Real’s weekend win in the Clasico against rivals Barcelona, they now have a three-point lead at the top of the Liga table.