E-Paper
When Cristiano Ronaldo left Real Madrid, I became more ambitious: Karim Benzema
With Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Real Madrid in 2018, Karim Benzema spoke about how his departure changed him as a player.
With Real Madrid set to face Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Super Cup on Thursday, Karim Benzema revealed that he became a much more ambitious footballer after Cristiano Ronaldo left the Spanish club. Speaking during a press conference, he said, "It’s been different for me since Cristiano Ronaldo left Real Madrid. It’s true that I’ve scored many more goals, but when Cristiano was here, we had a different style of play, I was providing more assists. He really helped me on and off the pitch."
"But at that time, I did know that I could do more and when he left, it was the time to change my game, change my ambitions and I am doing that well at the moment."
Since Ronaldo's departure in 2018, Benzema has scored at least 21 goals in each of the last four seasons and also helped Madrid lift the Champions League trophy last season. Also on being asked if he was the best player in the world, Benzema said, "I’m not going to say if I’m the best or not. But, each year I try to give my maximum for the best club in the world."
"I have to play to a high level every year, but it’s true that last year’s level was very good. I just try to help my team in the matches. I'm not thinking about Marcelo’s record, but I'm going to try to win as many trophies as possible. I've always said that the collective trophies are more important than the individual ones," he further added.
