Karim Benzema: Decoding his career stats for club and country
On Thursday, Karim Benzema was adjudged the UEFA Men's Player of the Year award. Benzema enjoyed a terrific 2021-22 season for both club and country. He was the top scorer for Real Madrid and helped them win a host of trophies, including the Champions League. Benzema also won the UEFA Nations League with France. The veteran striker has had an amazing career. Here's more.
Karim Benzema's 2021-22 season for club and country
Benzema went on to score a staggering 15 goals in the Champions League 2021-22 campaign and registered one assist. He scored hat-tricks against PSG and Chelsea in the knockout stages. Benzema topped the scoring in La Liga with 27 goals. He also clocked 12 assists. He scored two goals and made one assist in the Spanish Super Cup. He scored six goals for France.
Second-highest scorer for Real Madrid
Benzema has amassed 325 goals for Real in all competitions. Recently, he took over Raul (323) to become the second-highest scorer for Los Blancos. He is only behind Cristiano Ronaldo (450). Benzema has 220 La Liga goals (third-highest) and is closing in on Raul (228). He is also the second-highest scorer for Real in Champions League (74).
Breaking down Benzema's numbers for Real
Benzema is into his 14th season at Real Madrid. His best returns came in 2021-22. He managed to score 44 goals in all competitions. He has scored 25-plus goals in a season on seven occasions. The veteran French striker is also a solid contributor in terms of assists. He has clocked 140 assists for Real to date, including 108 in La Liga.
66 goals in 148 matches for Lyon
Prior to his move to Real in 2009, Benzema played for French club Lyon. He clocked prolific numbers, scoring 66 goals in 148 matches. He scored 31 and 23 goals respectively in the 2007-08 and 2008-09 campaigns respectively. He netted 43 goals in Ligue 1 for Lyon and netted 12 in the Champions League.
Joint-third highest scorer in the UCL
Benzema is the joint-third highest scorer in the Champions League. He has 86 UCL goals alongside Robert Lewandowski. Cristiano (140) and Lionel Messi (125) are the top scorers in UCL history.
37 goals for France
In 97 matches for France, Benzema has netted 37 goals to date. He didn't appear for France between 2016-2020 and was called back last year. Since his return, he has 10 goals in 13 games. He has won one Nations League trophy.
Individual accolades for Benzema
Benzema has won 4 French Player of the Year awards. He won La Liga Player of the Season award in 2019-20. He won the Pichichi Trophy in 2021-22. He has lifted 5 La Liga Player of the Month awards. On four occasions, he has been included in La Liga Team of the Year. And now, he has won the UEFA award.
Notable awards in international tournaments
Benzema won two Man of the Match awards at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He won UEFA Nations League Finals Goal of the Tournament in 2021. He was adjudged MOM in the Nations League final in 2021. He won the UEFA Euro 2020 Bronze Boot.
Benzema has won a host of trophies at club level
Benzema won seven trophies with Lyon, including four Ligue 1 honors. He won one Coupe de France and two Trophee des Champions. With Real, Benzema has collected four La Liga honors, two Copa del Reys, four Spanish Super Cups, five Champions League titles, four UEFA Super Leagues, and four FIFA Club World Cups.
