The Frenchman is no doubt in the form of his life, having scored seven goals in his last three Champions League games, taking his overall tally for the season to a whopping 38.
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Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema scored the decisive goal against Chelsea on Tuesday that took his side to the semi-finals of Champions League. The Los Blancos lost the second leg of the quarter-final 3-2 at Santiago Bernabeu but went through to the next round with a 5-4 aggregate win. Benzema’s 95th minute header was his fourth goal of the tie, taking his overall tally for the season to a whopping 38. The 34-year-old striker is in the form of his life and is no doubt the front-runner to win the 2022 Ballon d’Or.
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A new qualification at home, ??????? ??????! ??
??? ??? ?? ????-??????… 9️⃣? #Nueve #HalaMadrid #UCL #Alhamdulilah ??❤️ pic.twitter.com/GkKOLanGq8— Karim Benzema (@Benzema) April 12, 2022
Following a change in the rules, this year’s Ballon d’Or will be received by the best player during the football season from July to June and not the one who stands out in the calendar year. The Ballon d’or will be handed to the winner in October and this year’s Champions League winner is expected to decide the winner, since the World Cup in Qatar will be held in November-December.
Robert Lewandowski is the likely to be Benzema’s closest rival but Bayern Munich were knocked out of the competition in the last-8 stage by Villarreal yesterday. The Poland international is once again having a stunning season, having netted 47 goals for Bayern across all competitions. But failure to reach the final four of the continental championship might put him on the back foot, while giving the advantage to Benzema.
Although Benzema has netted nine goals less than Lewandowski so far, the Frenchman has scored some very crucial goals to almost single handedly take his side forward. In the Champions League last-16 second leg tie against Paris Saint-Germain, the 34-year-old netted a hat-trick in the last 30 minutes to secure a 3-2 aggregate win.
And then, in the first leg of the quarter-final at Stamford Bridge, he again scored thrice to secure a 3-1 victory for his team before scoring the all-important goal in the home leg.
On the other hand, Benzema is also leading the race for the La Liga golden boot with 24 scalps to his name, while his nearest rival Vinicius Junior has scored ten goals less than the Frenchman.
Although Lewandowski has been leading the Champions League top scorers list with 13 goals, Benzema is just one goal behind him. With at least two more games remaining for the Frenchman, he can very well overtake Lewandowski.
Meanwhile Liverpool striker Sadio Mane could be the dark horse in the race for the Ballon d’Or. The Senegal international helped his side win the African Cup of nations this winter and also played a crucial role in the world cup play-offs against Egypt. If Liverpool go on to win the Champions League, Premier League and the FA Cup, he could very well take the award.
The new Ballon d’Or rules also give more prominence to individual achievements, which means Benzema could be the favorite, even if the Los Blancos don’t lift the European trophy.
