Karim Mostafa Benzema is a French professional footballer, presently playing as a striker for the French national football team and the Spanish professional football club ‘Real Madrid.’ He joined the Lyon-based French football club ‘Olympique Lyonnais,’ better known as ‘Lyon,’ at the age of 9. He made his professional debut in the 2004–2005 season and rose to prominence in the 2007–2008 season, becoming the season’s top scorer, netting over 30 goals, as ‘Lyon’ clinched their seventh league title in a row. He was named the ‘Ligue 1 Player of the Year’ and was enlisted in the ‘Team of the Year’ by the ‘National Union of Professional Footballers’ (UNFP). He signed a six-year contract with ‘Real Madrid’ in 2009 and has so far achieved several feats with the club, including winning the ‘Copa del Rey’ and the ‘La Liga.’ He won the ‘French Player of the Year’ award thrice. His performance as part of the national team is equally impressive. He was part of the ‘Under-17’ team that won the 2004 ‘UEFA European Under-17 Championship.’ After making his senior debut in March 2007, he was part of three major international tournaments, namely, the ‘UEFA European Football Championship’ in 2008 and 2012, and the 2014 ‘FIFA CUP"
Childhood & Early Life
He was born on December 19, 1987, in Lyon, France, to Hafid Benzema and Wahida Djebbara, French nationals of Algerian descent. He grew up in a small house in Bron and led a modest lifestyle along with his eight siblings.
He began his career in football at the age of 8, joining the local football club ‘Bron Terraillon SC.’ Sabri and Gressy, his younger brothers, also became footballers. Benzema attracted the attention of the club officials of ‘Lyon’ after netting two goals against the youth academy of the club in an ‘Under-10’ match. He eventually joined ‘Lyon’ in 1996.
Career
After joining Lyon, he was made part of the academy of the club, where he soon climbed up the youth categories. The French domestic league ‘Championnat National des 16 ans,’ for footballers below the age of 16, saw him scoring 38 goals.
He was elevated to the reserve team of the club that participated in the football league competition ‘Championnat de France Amateur,’ prior to the 2004–2005 season of the ‘Ligue 1.’
He made his professional debut on January 15, 2005, against ‘FC Metz.’ ‘Lyon’ won the match 2–0. Thereafter, Benzzema signed a three-year professional contract. The club earned its fourth successive league title that season.
He made his ‘UEFA Champions League’ debut on December 6, 2005, in the final group-stage match of ‘Lyon,’ against the Norwegian club ‘Rosenborg,’ which the club won 2–1. The match marked the first professional goal scored by Benzema.
He scored his first professional double in January 2006, when ‘Lyon’ won 4–0 against ‘Grenoble’ in the ‘Coupe de France.’ On March 4, the same year, he garnered his first professional league goal of his career, playing against ‘Ajaccio.’
He played as the lead striker during the 2007–2008 season. He scored 20 goals and topped the league, a feat that fetched him the ‘Trophée du Meilleur Buteur’ award. He netted a goal in the ‘Coupe de la Ligue,’ scored four goals in the ‘Champions League,’ and made six goals in six ‘Coupe de France’ matches, aiding ‘Lyon’ in earning the first double in the history of the club. He also delivered a hat-trick that season, on September 15, against ‘Metz.’
He had a contract extension with ‘Lyon’ on March 13, 2008, which meant he would be retained till 2013, with an option for an extension of another year. That season, the ‘UNFP’ named him the ‘Ligue 1 Player of the Year’ and enlisted him in the ‘Team of the Year.’ He also received the ‘Bravo Award’ from the Italian magazine ‘Guerin Sportivo’ in 2008.
On July 9, 2009, he signed a six-year contract with the Spanish professional football club ‘Real Madrid.’ His debut with the club was on its opening pre-season friendly match with the Irish club ‘Shamrock Rovers’ in Dublin, on July 20 that year. He scored his first goal for the club in the same match and led them to a 1–0 win.
An annual friendly tournament organized for the ‘Santiago Bernabeu Trophy’ saw him scoring two goals against the Norwegian club ‘Rosenborg’ on August 24, 2009, when ‘Real Madrid’ clinched a 4-0 win.
Comments
Post a Comment