Benzema is half Madrid

Benzema was the leader of Real Madrid in Eibar, through thick and thin, when the white team swam with the current and when it did so hit by that cataract of direct play that are Mendilibar's pupils. Together with Modric, he illuminated 20 minutes of cinema of Madrid at the start of the meeting and imposed his figure above the others: first making good Rodrygo's subtle pass to mark the 0-1; and then, assisting the Croatian for the 0-2, dancing on the lime, in an action that evoked that play at the Calderón that catapulted Madrid to a new Champions League final and nipped the rojiblanca onslaught.

Benzema was able to score two more goals in Ipurua, a clear header went away for the 0-3 (As easy as it seemed, he went over his neck) and the second goal was annulled, by centimeters, after an excellent gallop, an exquisite control and a definition with the outside. In the second half, with Eibar pushing and Madrid tired, he spread out on the sides to give air in the engine room, sacrificing proximity to the area. And on the verge of the end, as a tip, a new assistance, this time to Lucas Vázquez. In Eibar and in the general of the course, Benzema is half Madrid.

Benzema: seven goals, five assists

Figuratively, but also literally. The French accumulates seven goals (second in the table, only behind Gerard Moreno, with eight) and five assists in the national championship, what produces a direct participation in 12 of the 25 goals that Madrid he has annotated in the 14 matchs who has played (the most in LaLiga, together with Aspas). It does not reach 50%, but just barely: it is 48%. If their participation in the goal plays is taken into account (without implying scoring or assisting), this figure rises to 15, the second most in the League, only behind Iago Aspas in Celta.

After a lazy start to the course, Benzema has been intoned and the Real Madrid notices it. He has five goals and two assists in the last four meetings of Zidane's team; he only stopped scoring against Atleti, in the derby, in a clash in which his influence only ceased to be noticed in the rival network, but which permeated every corner of the white team: 43 good passes, five recoveries, two shots, one control back in time to enter the 2020 highlights … It is not by chance that Madrid's most brilliant moment, in which he has found the regularity of the results (there are five consecutive victories), match Karim's rush.

His figures, in fact, could be more abundant if not for his relationship with the posts, elusive for now. He is the player who has encountered LaLiga wood the most times (four). They are the disadvantages of a style that puts technique before power: he has fired 31 shots, 18 of them on target; Messi, who has a goal less, He has tried his luck 51 times in total and up to 36, twice the French, between suits. Benzema does not waste bullets, but he has left behind that apathetic version of other offensive courses: he has finished between clubs at least once in all his LaLiga duels.