Karim Benzema and his teammates are not yet on vacation. Al-Ittihad struck a huge blow in the Saudi Pro League by beating Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr (2-1), two weeks ago, to move to the top of the standings at the break with two points ahead of Al -Hilal, the all-powerful reigning champion. The team led by Laurent Blanc has a record of 12 victories and only one defeat (against Al-Hilal).
Al-Ittihad left for training in Oman (south-east of the Arabian Peninsula), to play a friendly match this Friday. Thursday evening, “KB9” was honored by his teammates for his 37th birthday. During the dinner, Fabinho came to hand over a huge cake to the captain of the Jeddah-based team, to everyone’s applause.
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Benzema escapes the speech
Intimidated, Benzema did not get up to offer a message of thanks. “A speech? For what ? We agree, it’s useless, thank you, ciao! »launched the 2022 Ballon d’Or, all smiles, to N’Golo Kanté. Predrag Rajkovic and Danilo Pereira were present alongside the two French internationals. The players and staff then took a photo with the former Real Madrid captain’s birthday cake. “Thank you, thank you”said the Lyonnais to the camera.
The players of Al-Ittihad (where Houssem Aouar and Moussa Diaby also play) will benefit from two weeks of vacation before resuming training. They will then prepare for the next Saudi Pro League meeting against Al-Feiha, the penultimate, on January 11. Benzema is essential in his second season in Saudi Arabia, with 10 goals and three assists in 10 league matches.
