“They say Cristiano is there for the money. I still feel the passion. I’m here to win.” Starring Cristiano Ronaldo, the Netflix documentary film titled
Saudi Pro League: Kickoffavailable from November 21, will certainly enjoy its small success on the video platform. The 2023-2024 season is told in six episodes and the stars of the Saudi championship have answered the call. Besides “CR7”, Neymar and Karim Benzema also speak, as does Steven Gerrard, coach at Al-Ettifaq.
The “Ney” was however devastated by a serious knee injury at the start of last season and the former number 10 of PSG is now at an impasse at Al-Hilal, the best team in the championship (by far), which no longer has room for him (only eight foreign players can be registered). Benzema also had a difficult start in Saudi Arabia. And he explains it precisely in this Netflix documentary, comfortably seated on a sofa, as shown in the trailer.
Benzema in the sights of supporters
Propelled as star captain of Al-Ittihad, then the reigning champion, the 2022 Ballon d’Or was poorly received by his coach, Nuno Espirito Santo, as well as by his new teammates. Al-Ittihad had a poor start to the season, Benzema suffered physical problems and became the target of the club’s supporters. The season ended very badly for Al-Ittihad, as the club finished very far from the champion Al-Hilal and did not qualify for either the Asian Champions League or the second continental competition (the Champions League Two). .
Things are going much better for Karim Benzema at Al-Ittihad. The Jeddah-based club suddenly became the most French club in the Saudi Pro League, with Laurent Blanc as coach and N’Golo Kanté, Houssem Aouar and Moussa Diaby in the squad alongside “KB9”. Predrag Rajkovic, Danilo Pereira and Fabinho, who all played in Ligue 1 for several years, also play in this team, currently runner-up to Al-Hilal after 10 days, ahead of Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.
