Unexplained absences and heavy criticism: Karim Benzema’s underwhelming first 6 months in Saudi Arabia | OneFootball

As reported by RMC Sport, Karim Benzema’s (36) start to life in Saudi Arabia as the star man at Al-Ittihad has not quite gone to plan. The 2022 Ballon d’Or winner was expected by most to dominate the Saudi Pro League and his arrival in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia was acclaimed as a massive capture for the ambitious footballing project the league possesses. Fast-forward six months and things haven’t gone as all involved expected.

Unexplained absences

The former Real Madrid striker was absent from Al-Ittihad training on the 28th and 29th of December, with no explanation as to why Benzema was not in Jeddah. There has been no official confirmation from the player’s side or the club’s side as to why the 36-year-old was not training with his Al-Ittihad teammates for two successive days. Benzema’s new coach Marcello Gallardo was also tight-lipped on the ongoing situation.

A reasonable explanation offered by RMC could be the cancellation of Al-Ittihad’s scheduled game against Al-Tai. This match was scheduled to take place on the 30th December but was cancelled due to extreme weather conditions. Whilst this may explain his absence, a silence on the official reason remains.

Heavy criticism from fans

Despite scoring on his debut, Benzema’s performances on the pitch have been underwhelming by the usual standards that he is held to. The former France international has scored 9 goals and registered 5 assists in 15 Saudi Pro League games. These numbers don’t look all that bad considering, however, when compared with Cristiano Ronaldo (19 goals), Aleksandar Mitrovic (16) and Georges-Kévin Nkoudou (14 goals) more was expected of him.

This has led to heavy criticism of the former Lyon striker from Al-Ittihad fans. The 36-year-old has been referred to by fans of the Saudi Pro League champions as “kitty”, according to RMC Sport. A stark contrast to the emblematic symbol of the club which is a tiger.

A supporter of Al-Ittihad quizzed by AFP also relayed these sentiments, “Benzema let the team down in big matches. He is the captain of the team, but he does not give the impression of being the leader of the team. He seems misguided like he’s in another world.”

Deactivated Instagram

Following a 5-2 thrashing against Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mané’s Al-Nassr, Benzema deactivated his official Instagram account. The Champions League winner was often an active presence on Instagram with excellently choreographed videos showing his lavish lifestyle. As a result, his deactivation in the aftermath of the match in which he missed a penalty came as a surprise.

Underwhelmed employers

Sources close to the club contacted by AFP in Jeddah have commented on the small discontent among leaders at Al-Ittihad over the Frenchman’s performances on the pitch. As a collective, at the time of writing, Benzema’s club only occupy 6th place in the Saudi Pro League – an underperformance considering they won the title in the 2022/23 season.

The source close to the club revealed they believe “(Benzema) did not achieve the expected results”. The unnamed source also added, “It is true that we expected more from Benzema, but we remain aware of his value as a world-class player. It is not always easy to land in a new championship and shine immediately and it’s perhaps a question of time.”

There appears to be a willingness to allow the Ballon d’Or winner to adapt within the unofficial rhetoric released by the club. However, it appears to be clear that they expected more from the former Madrid man.

GFFN | Liam Wraith