How star man Benzema delivered on Al Ittihad fan promise - and big time | OneFootball

Karim Benzema was direct. Definite even.

“This season, the fans will be proud of us,” the Frenchman declared last August, in an open and honest interview with the Saudi Pro League as the 2024-25 Roshn Saudi League geared up to kick off.

If it was delivered with the assuredness of someone who has seen, and done, almost all in football, that’s because Benzema has. But it was also an admission that the season before was far from his best.

Benzema arrived in Saudi Arabia in July 2023 as football's reigning Ballon d’Or, recognition for the previous year’s endeavour at Real Madrid when he fired the Spanish giants to a La Liga and UEFA Champions League double.

The latter represented Benzema’s fifth European Cup during a gilded 14-year stint at the club, the former France international departing for the Kingdom as the second-highest scorer in Madrid’s history.

And if his debut campaign in the RSL fell some way short of those standards – Al Ittihad, then defending champions, finished a distant fifth, while Benzema managed nine goals in 21 league appearances – he understood last summer that significant improvement was required.

“This season is really a new page for the club,” Benzema said. “We’re all pulling in the same direction. We have just one objective: to do well and win trophies.”

Ultimately, Al Ittihad did just that, Benzema playing a pivotal part. There were the 21 goals in 29 RSL matches, some the difference between winning and dropping points, as Al Ittihad sealed the title with three rounds to spare.

Benzema chipped in with nine assists, too, meaning that no one in the top flight bettered him for goal contributions. Only Salem Al Dawsari, his counterpart captain at Al Hilal, matched his total of 30.

So, an Al Ittihad rebuilt in Benzema’s image – compatriots Laurent Blanc and Moussa Diaby arrived in pre-season alongside fellow Olympique Lyon product Houssem Aouar – were too good for everyone else. In the end, the gap between them in first and Al Hilal in second stood at eight points.

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“I think it's done,” Benzema told the SPL last week, moments after hoisting aloft the RSL trophy at a rocking Alinma Stadium, a reference to the team delivering on their declaration. His declaration.

“When you speak, you stand by your words, I’d say," he added. "It took a bit of adjustment: new team, new players, new coach. We also had a bit more luck.

"I was 100 percent sure we were going to win the championship. It’s a great source of pride - I’m happy. And I hope we’ll keep going.”

Sure enough, both club and captain maintained the momentum. Four days later, two days after Benzema was named RSL Player of the Season, Al Ittihad clinched the double, triumphing in the King’s Cup final against Al Qadsiah.

Benzema, of course, was central in that. He scored twice in the 3-1 win: the opener and an injury-time closer to secure the cup.

It felt fitting, since late goals were a feature of Al Ittihad’s championship success.

In the RSL, they netted beyond the 85th minute a staggering 12 times - indeed, they were ranked first for points won from losing positions (21) - with notable stoppage-time victories against Al Kholood, Al Taawoun, Al Riyadh and Al Nassr (twice).

In April, in the second Sea Derby against Jeddah rivals Al Ahli, Benzema grabbed a 94th-minute equaliser to snatch a draw and sustain Al Ittihad's title challenge.

“His influence has been essential to the team’s success this season,” Aouar told the SPL last month. “I don’t think we would’ve had the same season, or the same results, without Karim. That’s just the reality.

“He’s been hugely important because, whether it was at Real Madrid, at Lyon, or now here, he’s always won. So it’s not luck, it’s not a coincidence; he’s a true competitor.

“When you have players who never give up - like Karim, who kept telling us not to let go until the very last minute, that we would score - you start to believe maybe something is possible."

And that’s what Benzema offers. Beyond the bare numbers - the goals, the assists - it’s the intangibles that count. He has more than fulfilled his role as team leader. Clearly, he made Al Ittihad believe.

Al Ittihad captain Karim Benzema with both trophies clinched this season

Aouar cited Benzema’s exacting expectations, of the demands he places on his colleagues. But he emphasised how the Al Ittihad No.9 “first and foremost, is demanding of himself”.

“He’s also demanding of his teammates," Aouar added. "Which I believe pushed us to stay focused on performance and, above all, to take the season seriously. That’s crucial when it comes to winning a league title, and he did it perfectly.”

As Aouar underlined, Benzema is a winner. A team player, as well, as could be seen any time he was quizzed this season about the race for the golden boot developing between him and Cristiano Ronaldo, the Al Nassr captain and a former teammate at Madrid.

Asked about the battle to be top scorer following the 4-1 triumph in the Old Derby at Al Wehda in Matchweek 20, a game in which he scored once and assisted twice, Benzema replied: “I want to say something: me, I'm not this guy to think to the score goals, score goals.

"It’s good to be there with Cristiano. But, for me, the more important, it's to win the game. So, if I can score more goals for my team, I'm happy.”

It encapsulates Benzema and his role in this all-conquering Al Ittihad. He may not be the loudest talker, but when he speaks, his words carry considerable weight.

“It’s hard not to be impressed by the way Karim Benzema plays,” Blanc said in a recent interview with the SPL. “Yes, everyone knew the player; the man, we knew a bit less.

“I’m not much of a talker, and neither is he. But we managed to understand and appreciate each other. I think football and the desire to win give him the ability to connect with others and communicate effectively.”

Communicate is what Benzema did right at the onset of the campaign. That time, though, it wasn’t simply to teammates, or his coach or those above in the club. But to the Al Ittihad fans, whom he again remarked about last week, shiny gold RSL winner’s medal around his neck.

“Yes, I enjoyed it, just like everyone else,” Benzema said. “We have a team that plays good football, and that’s a real pleasure. Our supporters as well; in every match, whether at home or away, they push us to do more, to show more.

“And that’s exactly what we did throughout the season.”

Put plainly, and echoing Benzema's prescient promise back before a ball was kicked, Al Ittihad made them proud.