Madrid (AFP)
Copiously embarrassed by Chelsea who often annihilated their attacking game, Real Madrid know they can count on a Karim Benzema who never lets him down.
Moral leader of his team, the French scored again Tuesday night.
The "Karimdependence" pointed out by Marca a week ago is verified match after match and the center forward did not finish this meeting with the armband for nothing.
At the height of the downpour that made the Merengues jerseys almost as translucent as their midfielder for the first 20 minutes, he was almost the only one to refuse English domination.
Wandering on all the front of the attack, he knew how to alternate perfectly between delivery, provocation with the ball to the foot or call.
Always so generous in his movements, we saw him come down to look for the ball and try to communicate a little of his energy to his teammates.
His cross strike of the 23rd minute, which grazed the outside of the post of an Edouard Mendy, arch-beaten despite his complete extension, sounded like a call for revolt, three minutes after an opening of the scoring of the most logical for the Blues.
- A killer, but with style -
Totally smothered in the middle, with in particular a N'Golo Kanté which gave the impression of having one or two twins on the lawn, as we could see him everywhere, each rise of the ball seemed to require a treasure of effort from the Toni Kroos, Casemiro or Luka Modric.
Deprived of any real launching pad, his accomplice in the attack, Vinicius Jr never really escaped the central hinge of the English, which neutralized his speed.
Under these conditions, it was important not to let opportunities slip by and here again, Benzema's killer instinct responded, but with style!
After a double deflection of the head, he had the right reflex to tame the leather of his forehead, before taking advantage of his rear imbalance to get the ball high and catapult it into the net (1-1, 29th).
Mastery of the gesture, perfect orientation in space, this 71st goal in the Champions League, which allows him to join the legend Raul in the 4th rank of the best directors in the competition, was an ode to the incomparable talent of the Frenchman.
- Giroud looked at him from the bench -
A few days after having passed Cristiano Ronaldo with the greatest number of assists with Real (88 against 87), "KB9" still imprints its mark on the prestigious club to which he has devoted most of his career.
Since his return from injury, he has brought Real back almost on his own in the wake of Atlético in a fight for the national title at 4, with Barcelona and Sevilla all standing in 3 points, which promises to be fascinating.
But his goal remains crucial before the return next Wednesday, even if it will be necessary to mark Stamford Bridge and that he will not always be able to do everything on his own.
The Frenchman came out in added time and the recorded applause broadcast on this occasion sounded very false compared to the ovation he would certainly have received at a full Santiago-Bernabeu.
Meanwhile, Olivier Giroud, once again stood on the bench to admire the "F1" roar while the "kart" remained in the pits, according to the famous comparison used by Benzema more than a year ago.
© 2021 AFP