Neither the one who scores the most, nor the one who attends the most, but yes, the best French player of the year. Karim Benzema has become the leader of Real Madrid over the seasons. Since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, the 'nine' has become the team's top scorer with 30 goals in 18/19, 27 in 19/20 and with 29 in 21/21 in which he still has a party to reach thirty. All these numbers accumulate and in addition, it continues to increase the volume of its other side. That of the gamer, that of 9 and a half, which makes him go from striker to total player.
A total player who, from tonight, knows that he will wear the France shirt again and he will also do it as the best French player according to advanced statistics.
Didier Deschamps, coach, and Nöel Le Graet, president of the French Federation, have lifted the veto imposed on Karim Benzema since the beginning of the Valbuena Case to join the world champion and thus try to get the European title that was awarded to them. he escaped, without him, at the Stade de France in 2016 against Cristiano's Portugal.
In data offered by BeSoccer Pro, an application developed by BeSoccer for data analysis, we can see that Karim Benzema is the best option that Didier Deschamps could summon according to advanced statistics. His ELO, a numerical assessment of performance and similar to that used in football video games, is today 95 above the 91 for Mbappé, the 90 points for Griezmann or the 88 for his teammate Raphael Varane. This data, on the other hand, is the peak of his career. In other words, Deschamps not only summons the best French player, but also the best version of Karim Benzema himself.
Some outstanding numbers
BeSoccer Pro measures the statistics for every 90 minutes and calculates 'ratings' to assess in comparison with other footballers. Here, it is no longer that Benzema stands out, it is that he accumulates outstanding in almost every category and in the general note.
In the last calendar year, Karim scores a 10 in goals without the need for penalties, in turnovers (for fair and necessary) and as a generator of play, giving almost one chance for a teammate for every 90 minutes. There, yes, he falls short in the assists chapter, where he adds less than a dozen. His data say that he is a good shooter, with more than 10 vertical passes per game, and that he attacks better than before with '10s' and '9s' in rating in goals from outside the area, efficiency when defining, shots from within the area and even in head goals, an area in which he has been improving in recent campaigns. Another fact to highlight is that of the first goal. In the last calendar year he has achieved the goal that opened the can more than 10 times. If it is important in a league, let's not say in a short seven-game tournament.
Graphic on Mbappé, Griezmann and Benzema. Data from 20/21 in 90 minutes.
BeSoccer
If the data is limited to the season and not to the calendar year, as can be seen in the graph, Mbappé's numbers at the offensive level do make him the best attacker with somewhat higher averages per category, although with Karim really close. Griezmann, the theoretical third leg of the attack, will also contribute in tasks of creation and defensive work, which is more difficult to group.
Instead of Giroud?
The opening match of the World Cup against Australia raised all the alarms and Deschamps changed the attack by putting a battering ram to work piecemeal. There, Giroud played his role being key without scoring as nine of the world champion a single goal in the entire tournament. Not a single goal or a single shot on goal in the entire tournament after seven hours of play on Russian soil.
With Karim Benzema, according to the averages he throws and his style of play, Deschamps will include another profile that serves to unblock the attack in another way based on falls to the middle, passes and combinations without losing scoring instinct as can be seen in the previous graph that compares them. It remains to be seen what the coach's bet will be.