Santiago Bernabeu Stadium
Fans on the stands were celebrating the victory, while Benzema had his head down, looking sowhat dejected.
This season, Benzema has played 12 tis for the team in various competitions, of which he was a substitute 10 tis, with over 300 minutes of playing ti.
This ti equals just over 4 regular matches, not quite 5.
With such playing ti, asking Benzema for eye-catching stats is unlikely, but the answer he has provided so far is 19 shots, 1 goal, and 1 assist.
There is no doubt that Benzema, having joined Real Madrid for several seasons, is increasingly finding no place for himself in this La Liga giant team. After this match, many fans hope to sell the cat from France.
They do not need "Benzecat."
Today, in this match against Valencia, Benzema basically played the full ga, coming close to scoring at least three tis. However, Benzema always made the "wrong" choice.
If we say the first chance was just Benzema getting on the field and not finding his rhythm yet, missing the opportunity at the last mont makes one deeply realize: the Frenchman currently doesn't blend into Real Madrid's dazzling attacking rhythm on the field.
Cristiano Ronaldo's ground cross after a breakthrough is well understood as having a high completion rate once delivered successfully, and any teammate capturing it tily can achieve a goal.
But Benzema, waiting in the middle, reacted noticeably a beat slower, and his body position was relatively behind. Although his slide shot looked dangerous, it was obvious he wasn't going to reach it.
In those three chances, Benzema didn't need a 50-ter sprint all the way to the goal, nor did he need to move outside for a surprising long shot.
Even if he learned what his predecessor Henry did at Arsenal, he could have scored a goal.
Such an opportunity now is basically like waiting for a rabbit, but Benzema missed them all. If market value fluctuated with match performances, these mistakes might drop it by a million in just one ga.
Of course, for Mourinho, looking at the current center forwards, Negredo already has a desire to leave, Higuain is injured and needs to encroach on space and shot rights of other players, while he also is ambitious.
Higuain's behavior can't be said to be wrong, but in Real Madrid's front line, Cristiano Ronaldo, Chen Zhong, and Kaka are the major players, with Kaka willing to give up so ball rights to act as support. The Portuguese and Chen Zhong dividing shot rights is already very "crowded".
Adding Higuain to the mix would only lead to a scenario where roles are indistinguishable.
Therefore, Mourinho is more inclined towards Benzema.
Because Benzema has an attribute that Higuain does not possess, which is currently needed in Real Madrid's front line.
That is his ability to coordinate and cover.
In this match, one could see Benzema pulling to the center, taking away a defender, and allowing Cristiano Ronaldo to easily penetrate the opponent multiple tis, all due to Benzema's actions, creating large gaps for the opposing defenders, which Chen Zhong's through pass leveraged.
In Mourinho's football, or modern football for that matter,
a player's covering role is an indispensable part of team football, and Benzema delivers on this aspect.
In so ordinary teams, based on this capability, Benzema could secure a starting spot.
But now he is at Real Madrid.
As a center forward in the penalty area, covering can add so points, but what's crucial is the ability to seize opportunities and score goals.
In this match, Benzema clearly couldn't find the scoring touch.
This isn't the most serious issue; the most serious is that it's now very evident that Benzema expresses himself overly inwardly, and with the loss of three open goals, we see a resigned-looking Benzema on the field, not showing much expression, only standing with hands on his hips sulking.
Honestly, fans would rather see Benzema kneel and sigh deeply, making dramatic gestures of imnse pain; at least this would show the player's inner "fire of desire" is burning fiercely. However, the current Benzema seems accustod to not scoring, leaving a "nonchalant" bad impression instead.
So fans are even more furious because of Benzema's display like this.
After Cristiano Ronaldo scored a spectacular second goal, the players gathered to celebrate. This celebration wasn't excessively warranted, as winning this ga was not a challenge for Real Madrid, but rather an expected outco.
Yet, collective celebration is the minimum.
But fans saw Benzema walk away silently, not wanting to join this brief and expected celebration.
This inevitably leads one to wonder if Benzema's act is personal opposition to Cristiano Ronaldo or a lack of collectivism?
Of course, those who understand Benzema may know he is simply just feeling "embarrassed," "frustrated," or "awkward." After all, he wasted too many chances, his mind always replaying those monts of mistakes, engaging in internal conflict.
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