Karim Benzema wins Ballon d’Or for the first time, says World Cup is ‘the next challenge’
- Benzema scored 44 goals in 46 games as he helped Real Madrid win the Champions League and La Liga in 2021-22
- Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas retained the Women’s Ballon d’Or for the second consecutive year
Karim Benzema’s focus on being a team player was rewarded when the Real Madrid and France forward was presented with the Ballon d’Or award on Monday after a remarkable season that saw him win the Champions League and become indispensable for Les Bleus.
The 34-year-old, who made his comeback with the national team after a gap of almost six years over a blackmail scandal, was pivotal in Real’s Champions League and La Liga double.
His partnership with Kylian Mbappe for his country, although not perfect, has made the world champions’ forward line one of the most formidable in the game.
Benzema, who has a killer instinct in front of goal, revels in making teammates shine and Monday’s trophy for the best player in the world was just reward for the selfless forward.
“It’s a collective victory. It’s an individual trophy but without your teammates you can’t score. Sometimes you might get a screamer but, for me, football is a collective sport and I will always be a team player,” Benzema said.
Benzema, who started his professional career at Olympique Lyonnais after being developed in their youth academy, joined Real in 2009 after four years with Lyon’s first team.
“I never surrendered. I was lucky to join Real, the best club in the world, and even if it was hard at the beginning, I stayed focused,” he said.
“I’ve worked on my mental strength, I’ve been courageous and determined.”
Benzema was handed the Ballon d’Or trophy at Paris’s Theatre du Chatelet by the great Zinedine Zidane, the last French player to win the award back in 1998.
The striker will now be hoping to win his first piece of major silverware with France at the World Cup in Qatar, having missed out on the 2018 tournament, which they won in Russia.
“My goal is to continue to enjoy playing football, to score and make my teammates score. The World Cup is the next challenge,” he said ahead of the finals starting on November 20.
Spanish player Alexia Putellas won the women’s trophy for the second straight year following another stand-out season with Barcelona.
Putellas scored 42 goals and delivered 22 assists last season. She became the first player to win the award twice.
With Barcelona, she won the Spanish League and reached the Champions League final. She has been sidelined since July after injuring her left knee and undergoing surgery on the eve of the Women’s European Championship.
“When I got injured I didn’t think I’d be here today, but it makes me proud to get recompense for all that hard work,” she said. “I miss playing so much and doing what I like to do the most.”
Putellas beat out fellow forwards Beth Mead of Arsenal and England and Sam Kerr of Chelsea and Australia for the award at the ceremony in Paris.
