Karim Benzema, a French striker who joined Saudi Pro League club Al Ittihad on a free transfer from Real Madrid a year ago, reportedly wants to quit the club. The Frenchman reportedly described his time at Al Ittihad as a “sad adventure” and feels uneasy in the Middle East, according to the Spanish news agency Relevo.

While playing for Real Madrid in the 2021–22 season, Benzema scored 44 goals and assisted on 15 more, propelling his team to La Liga and the Champions League titles. In July 2023, barely eight months after winning the 2022 Ballon d’Or, he surprised the whole footballing world by announcing his relocation to Saudi Arabia.

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Only 29 games have been played by the 36-year-old this season as a result of persistent muscle and back ailments as well as a rift with manager Nuno Espirito Santo, who was later fired. With only 13 goals and 8 assists, he has seemingly faded into oblivion.

For more testing and to keep treating his muscle injuries, Benzema went back to Real Madrid’s facilities earlier this month. Reports indicate that he expressed his dissatisfaction with his circumstances in Al Ittihad to those close to him during this visit.

It appears like the Frenchman is determined to get out of there before the season ends. But his present deal isn’t up until 2026, so Al Ittihad still has the upper hand when it comes to a possible exit.

Reviewing Karim Benzema’s statistics while he was a member of Real MadridBenzema scored an incredible number of goals while playing for Real Madrid and was widely considered to be one of the top forwards of all time.

After joining Olympique Lyonnais, another French powerhouse, for €35 million in July 2009, the Frenchman made his Santiago Bernabeu debut. Even though his rookie year with the club was uneventful, he really started to make an impact in the 2010–11 season and beyond.

Benzema scored 20 goals in six consecutive seasons before suffering a small slump in 2016–2018. Between the 2018–19 season and the 2022–23 season, he scored goals at a high rate.

While playing for Los Blancos, Benzema was not only a brilliant scorer, but also an outstanding creator of scoring opportunities. With the exception of his first and final seasons with the club, he recorded eight or more assists in every campaign. His greatest return was twenty-one in 2012–13.

In his time with Real Madrid, he won five UEFA Club World Cups, four La Liga championships, three Copas del Rey, four Supercopas de España, and five Champions Leagues. Along with Lionel Messi, he has an astonishing record for most goals scored in a Champions League season (18 consecutive campaigns, from 2005–06 to 2022–23).

While playing for Real Madrid for 14 years, he appeared in 648 games, scored 354 goals, and set up 165 more. After an outstanding career that concluded in the 2022 Ballon d’Or, he finished second all-time in scoring for Real Madrid.