Benzema not focused on Ronaldo battle, has eyes only for RSL title | OneFootball

In-form Karim Benzema is putting to one side the race for the golden boot with Cristiano Ronaldo as he focuses solely on firing Al Ittihad to the Roshn Saudi League title.

Benzema was again the main man for the league leaders in Saturday night’s Old Derby victory at Al Wehda, with the Frenchman scoring one goal and assisting another two in the 4-1 win in Mecca.

The victory, coupled with second-placed Al Hilal’s derby draw with Al Riyadh on Friday, sees Al Ittihad increase their advantage at the summit to four points after 20 rounds.

It also tees up nicely this week’s crunch clash in the battle for the top-flight trophy, when Al Ittihad host reigning champions Al Hilal on Saturday in the season’s second Saudi Clasico.

Meanwhile, Benzema’s fifth goal in six RSL matches lifted him to 15 for the campaign, one behind former Real Madrid teammate Ronaldo at the top of the scoring charts.

However, when asked about the tussle for the golden boot Ronaldo captured in record-breaking fashion last season, the Al Ittihad captain 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.”

On whether he preferred scoring or creating goals for teammates, Benzema said: “I enjoy football to make goals, to make assist, to help my team. Because the team is the more important for me. So, I'm happy.”

Benzema, 37, paid tribute to Al Ittihad’s passionate support, who at King Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium again drove the team towards victory. The win represented Al Ittihad’s third on the bounce since last month’s upset defeat to Damac – only their second league reverse this season.

“We did a great job with amazing fans,” Benzema said. “They push us, so we do the things, so we're in the pitch to win the game.

“Of course, we look at the other teams because they are good too, but we are concentrating on Al Ittihad club. We focus on us, and we go far.

Switching focus now to next weekend’s marquee match against Al Hilal, Benzema added: “For us, all the games are very important. Of course, Al Hilal is one of the best teams in Saudi, so we're going to prepare well this game because it's a big game for us.”