One of the favorites to win this year’s Ballon d’Or is Karim Benzema, who has said that his former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo has given him confidence to win the award.
Cristiano Ronaldo has helped Karim Benzema, a former teammate at Real Madrid, in his quest to win this year’s Ballon d’Or.
It is the best time of Benzema’s career. He is one of the top candidates for the Ballon d’Or this year and is one of 30 players on the shortlist for the best men’s player in the world. The Frenchman played alongside Ronaldo at the Santiago Bernabeu across a trophy-laden spell of nine seasons between 2009 and 2018, when the Portuguese superstar then joined Juventus.
Benzema arrived in the Spanish capital in the same summer as Ronaldo, and the two built up a formidable attacking understanding across their near-decade together at the club.
Ronaldo had already won his first Ballon d’Or award the year before joining Madrid from Manchester United, inspired by his 42-goal season for the Red Devils in 2007–08.
The Portuguese superstar would go on to win another four Ballon d’Or crowns during his time with Benzema at Los Blancos, pipping his long-term rival Lionel Messi to the crown in 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017.
Benzema and Ronaldo starred in attack for Madrid for their Champions League success in 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2018, when they formed a formidable attacking trio alongside Welsh forward Gareth Bale, who had joined from Tottenham in 2013.
The former Lyon striker had primarily played second fiddle to Ronaldo during their time together, as he played primarily in a right-sided role and was often used as a foil to help assist his teammate.
Benzema, Ronaldo and Bale won four Champions League titles together at Real Madrid ( Image: Getty Images)
Yet his role changed following Ronaldo’s exit in 2018, with three of his five best goal-scoring seasons at the club coming in the years since—scoring 98 goals for the club since that summer.
Now he has explained that Ronaldo’s individual successes acted as an inspiration for him to thrive.
Benzema explained in an interview with ESPN: “It’s been a dream since I was really young.
“It is motivation, too. Just making it onto the list of 30 nominees is already satisfying.
“It has always been an objective, always in the back of my mind.
“When Cristiano Ronaldo won it in the past and got it on the pitch at the Bernabeu, I was happy for him, of course.
“I’m happy to be on his team, and then you have to think, Ah yes, I want to win it too.
“I can say that I’ve never been so close to winning it, thanks to my performances and what I’ve been doing in the past three or four years here.”
Benzema currently leads Europe’s major leagues for both goals and assists in 2021–22, with a remarkable 41 goals and 16 assists for Real Madrid since the start of last season.
He has also enjoyed a return to the France international setup, for whom he netted five goals in 10 games and helped secure the Nations League title for them, netting in both the semi-final and final, the latter of which was a remarkable strike.