At Real, Benzema remains the king

Stayed in Madrid to treat pain in his left calf during the international break, Karim Benzema was starter, captain and decisive for his 6th consecutive match with Real on Saturday on the lawn of Celta Vigo (2-1).

Real benefited from three penalties in their favor and "KB9" took care of all of them.

He converted the first (19th), saw his second attempt repelled by Matias Dituro and his iconic cap (64th), but he did not escape and presented himself again against the Argentinian goalkeeper five minutes later to convert the third penalty in favor of the Merengues.

Real striker Karim Benzema scored twice from the penalty spot at Celta Vigo on April 2, 2022 MIGUEL RIOPA AFP

With these two goals, Benzema asserts himself a little more like the "Pichichi", the top scorer in La Liga (24 goals in 26 matches), in addition to leading the dance in the ranking of the best passers (11 assists).

He has already scored 34 goals in all competitions this season, his best total since joining Madrid (13 seasons) ahead of his 32 goals scored in 2011-2012.

All this, two months from the end of the season.

Nkunku walks on water with Leipzig

Coach Didier Deschamps sometimes warns against the "sometimes difficult aftermath" experienced by new internationals, but Christopher Nkunku seems to have perfectly digested his first stay with the Blues and his first two selections against Côte d'Ivoire and Africa from South.

On Saturday, he picked up where he left off with Leipzig before the international window: he scored once and provided three assists in RB's stunning 4-1 victory at Dortmund, which sees the Saxons occupy now only fourth place, qualifying for the next Champions League.

French midfielder from Leipzig Christopher Nkunku scores the 3rd goal against Borussia, during the 28th day of the Bundesliga, April 2, 2022 in Dortmund Ina Fassbender AFP

"When you see how much he invests (...) everything looks so easy with him", marveled his Austrian international teammate Konrad Laimer, served twice by the former Parisian on his two goals in Dortmund .

"It's the result of hard work, which ends up paying off. That he has the quality, we've been seeing him for a long time, but now he also has the consistency, and that makes the difference," added Love it.

The PSG-trained striker now has 16 goals (including 9 in 11 matches since January) and 13 assists this season, making 29 goal appearances.

This total makes him the second best player in the Bundesliga in this ranking, behind Fifa Player of the Year 2020 and 2021 Robert Lewandowski.

The Pole has been involved 34 times: 31 goals and three assists.

Rabiot, at the party despite the defeat

It's rare enough to be underlined: Adrien Rabiot came out to loud applause from Juventus Stadium on Sunday after his big game against Inter Milan (0-1).

Despite the undeserved defeat, this dominant Rabiot, on his 27th birthday, set the tone for one of Juve's best performances this season, for the entire Italian press: a "hardly ever seen grinta" ( Corriere della Sera), "so many races" (Repubblica), an "aggressive, combative (...) super" Rabiot (Gazzetta dello Sport), "he imposed his physique on Barella" (Tuttosport)...

French Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot tackles his Inter Milan counterpart Nicolo Barella during the Italian Super Cup on January 12, 2022 at the San Siro Stadium MIGUEL MEDINA AFP / Archives

Despite a quick warning for a foul on Barella (15th), the ex-Parisian showed a permanent commitment to dominate the battle in the middle.

His final tackle, once out of the field, the French reserved it for the referee, guilty according to him of not having awarded a penalty to Juve at the start of the second half: "There was probably a penalty for us, the referee decided the fate of the match", cursed Rabiot in front of the microphones before opting for the irony on Instagram: "It's difficult to play eleven against twelve!"

After a lackluster international rally - whistles at the Vélodrome against Côte d'Ivoire and the impression that Aurélien Tchouaméni is close to overtaking him in the hierarchy of circles - the "Duke" quickly recovered.

© 2022 AFP