Karim Benzema reiterated that he wants to leave Al-Ittihad, despite reports linking him to Manchester United.
Just this summer, when Benzema chose to leave Real Madrid on a free transfer, did he relocate to the Saudi Pro League. The forward won four La Liga championships and five Champions League trophies while playing for Los Blancos, turning him into a modern-day legend at the Bernabeu.
That being said, despite his 12 goals in 20 Al-Ittihad appearances, the Frenchman’s relocation to the Middle East has not gone as planned. Now sitting a miserable seventh in the table, Al-Ittihad has had a terrible defence of their Saudi Pro League title.
Even though Benzema was the team captain, he returned to winter training 17 days later than expected. That gave rise to rumours that, only six months after coming to Saudi Arabia, he could try to shorten his term at Al-Ittihad.
Benzema seems to have destroyed United and Lyon’s ambitions of getting him, despite the fact that both teams have expressed interest in signing him. Rather, he has maintained that he is content in Saudi Arabia and that the rumours of his possible departure are untrue.
“It’s totally false!” Benzema declared to L’Equipe. The French media is at a loss for ideas these days. Bigger is preferable.
Lyon intensified their pursuit of Benzema, and now it has been reported that he is not thinking of moving this month. The news that United had ruled themselves out of a deal, as reported by Mirror Football, gave the French team hope for a return to the Groupama Arena.
Despite the fact that the Red Devils need a striker, club executives have decided not to pursue the five-time Champions League winner due to his age and £86 million annual salary. Despite Rasmus Hojlund’s inability to score since joining in the summer, United does not consider Benzema to be a realistic possibility.
The Red Devils’ withdrawal seemed to give Lyon the go-ahead to pursue the Ittihad skipper on their own. He made his debut in Les Gones’ first squad in 2004 and went on to win four Ligue 1 titles with them.
The Athletic is saying that Lyon is looking at making a deal to get him back to the team. Benzema has not yet told club management that he wishes to go, and Ittihad has not received any offers for the striker.
Although Benzema’s future still seems uncertain, Ittihad returns on February 4. Given the Frenchman’s remarks about his contentment in the Middle East, it is now unknown if Lyon will press their chase.
