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Real Madrid: 5 players who will be crucial in the UCL

By Sai Siddhartha S

Real Madrid (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
Real Madrid (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images) /
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The UEFA Champions League is coming back and Real Madrid are going to face Atalanta in the round of 16. The first leg will be played on the 24th of February, at the Stadio di Bergamo. This is the only competition in which Real Madrid are practically alive, as Los Blancos have been knocked out of the Copa Del Rey, and are 3rd in the league, 10 points off Atletico Madrid who still have a game in hand.

Zinedine Zidane’s men have to win the UEFA Champions League to avoid a trophyless season. When Real Madrid is compared to the other big clubs of Europe like Bayern Munich, Liverpool, and Manchester City, they would never look like the favourites. But anything can happen in the UCL, and the players shouldn’t go into the competition with a feeling. They have reached that point of the season where every player needs to step up, and some players will be very important for the team.

Let us have a look at 5 such players, who will be very crucial for the club’s success.

Real Madrid, Karim Benzema
Real Madrid, Karim Benzema (Photo by PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU/AFP via Getty Images) /

Karim Benzema

Ever since the best player in the history of UCL left Real Madrid, Real Madrid have struggled a lot in attack. But if there is one person who stepped up in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo , it is the evergreen Karim Benzema.

Karim Benzema has scored 65 goals and assisted 23 in LaLiga and UCL in 108 appearances for Real Madrid since the beginning of the 2018/19 season, according to Whoscored. he has scored 2 UCL knockout goals, against Ajax in 2019 and Manchester City in 2020 respectively.

But his impact is far more than what these numbers suggest. He is the focal point of Real Madrid’s attack, and at times he acts as the link between the forward line and the midfield. His presence is so important for Real Madrid that whenever he is having a bad game or if he isn’t playing, the attack looks clueless most of the times. The overreliance on Karim Benzema can be criticised, but at the same time the brilliance of this man can never be ignored.

Real Madrid have shifted from the era of Ronaldependence to Benz-dependence, and Karim Benzema is going to be very crucial for Real Madrid in UCL.

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