Real Madrid: Karim Benzema makes Cristiano Ronaldo confession

Karim Benzema has taken his game to the next level ever since Cristiano Ronaldo departed the club in the summer of 2018 in order to join Juventus. It is easy to forget but once upon a time, the Frenchman was not the most popular figure amongst Real Madrid fans. In fact, a lot of people even believed that the club had made a mistake by letting Gonzalo Higuain go and keeping him.

It is safe to say that things have changed drastically over the years. Benzema inspired Real Madrid to the Champions League title last season and is the firm favourite to win the Ballon d’Or.

Now, a lot of fans believe that Benzema had had to sacrifice his game in order to accommodate Ronaldo as the main man at Real Madrid and when you see his stats since the Portuguese superstar’s departure, there is definitely a discussion to be had there.

Benzema has admitted that his role has changed since Ronaldo left the club but he also recognises that reaching the former Real Madrid number 7’s goal tally is impossible. As reported by Marca, the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year told European Sports Media:

"“Cristiano helped me a lot.“With him I had another role and when he left, I knew I could take a step forward in scoring goals, but still playing football.“What has changed since then is my goal tally, but I’m still playing the way I think you have to play this game. The figures mean I’m not far behind the Real Madrid legends, and that gives me confidence, even though I know that reaching Cristiano’s goal [figures] is impossible.”"

Benzema makes confession about Ronaldo’s Real Madrid exit

Since the summer of 2018, one has to say that Benzema has enjoyed a better time than Ronaldo on the pitch.

The Portuguese superstar did win a few trophies with Juventus, but in Europe, they never even managed to reach the Champions League semi-finals during his three years at the club. Since then, he has joined Manchester United and unless the Portuguese superstar is able to complete a late exit, he will be playing Europa League football this season.

On the other hand, Benzema has arguably been the best footballer in the world over this period of time alongside Robert Lewandowski. And at 34 years of age, the Frenchman seems to be only getting better with time.