No idea mate, let's hope Aguero has something to do with it.
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) and Imran (@Annihilate Now!) are here to discuss Amad saving our blushes in a win against Southampton as well as our now annual loss at home to Brighton. They discuss Amorim's post-match comments, revisit how mid-table we may or may not be, and discuss some transfer news.
It was reported a few weeks ago that there were discussions on his contract. It will get serious by the end of the season, Benz's contract ends in June 2015. He has a family in Madrid and he likes working with ZZ, I can't see him leaving unless he gets pushed out for a new signing.
He's a technically excellent footballer, but he misses too many chances. Just missed another great chance against Barcelona.
Will he ever have that "killer mentality"?
Will he ever have that "killer mentality"?
Disappointed in the pass to bale. With a bit more power Bale would have got there.
Vintage Karim tonight, good in the build up but shit in the finish.
Still, he made Di Maria's goal with an absolutely marvellous pass.
A very mobile and efficient link-up player I think. And it's not like he doesn't give you goals either, even though he misses his fair share of chances. I rate him.
A very mobile and efficient link-up player I think. And it's not like he doesn't give you goals either, even though he misses his fair share of chances. I rate him.
I think he was better for Lyon than he has been for Madrid. Never really made the step up which many thought he would.
He's been very good this season. Despite what adexkola might tell you, strikers can have more to their game than just being pure goalscorers.
As a mobile frontman who links up with the midfield and makes space for Ronaldo and Bale's movement inside, Benzema's done a good job this season.
As a mobile frontman who links up with the midfield and makes space for Ronaldo and Bale's movement inside, Benzema's done a good job this season.
He's a brilliant player, just not a great finisher.
Perfect foil for Cristiano and co, and like @Aboutreika18 says he's been very good this season.
Perfect foil for Cristiano and co, and like @Aboutreika18 says he's been very good this season.
Absolutely. Benzema is one of those players that even when they're not contributing goals-wise, they're adding well with his great link-up and hold-up play. He's the prime example of a modern-day centre-forward. Though he missed two chances today, he played a great pass to Di María for the first goal. He's improved so much, but he really needs to find that killer mentality IMO. He's a 30+ goals striker if he improves his finishing. As has been said, he's the perfect type of centre-forward for Ronaldo. I do think he needs a rest though. He looks tired to me, he's barely had a rest this season? He's not hitting his shots with genuine conviction either.
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He is a great player and tbh I don't know what to do with him. There are better players out there like suarez and aguero, but there is no guarantee they would work with bale and Ronaldo as well as him or that they would track back as much as him or bring others into play like he does. What really annoys me about him is that he is always one miss away from a confidence crisis. When he got subbed vs barca a few weeks ago he looked pissed at carlo and that is a good thing for me. He is a very talented player and he should act and believe he is one. He should want top play all the minutes and get as many goals as possible. He should want to make the most of his talent.
Suarez would 100% track back. He's one of the hardest working attackers that I've ever seen. You could stick Suarez in any role in the attack and I think he'd work well. He's not going to Madrid this summer though.
In what could possibly be a valiant attempt to resist anything and everything Barcaish, every Madrid player seemed to be under orders to never pass to any of their teammates at any point, under any circumstances outside their own half if at all possible. Benzema especially excelled at this.
Benzema is fantastic. I really dont know why Madridista dont like him. 38 goals and assists in 3500 minutes is great considering the role he has to play.
Don't know what to do with him? You've got the biggest goalscorer in the world on one side of him and the most expensive player in the world on the other side, who's also very good at scoring goals. Benzema is probably the most creative striker in the world. Rooney is pretty much his only rival in that sense. He's always finding space, great at keeping the ball and getting out of tight spots and can score wonderous goals. He's the best striker you could possibly have in this team asides from obviously Messi.
So what if he misses a few chances. Every striker does that. He's great. Started the season out in a bit of a goal scoring rut but he's been great ever since he started finding the net again.
There's Suarez of course. Kind of forgot about him. He's more selfish than Benzema. That's for sure. Not that he's a particularly selfish player but you have to consider who you're partnering him with. You wouldn't be able to keep them both.
I know, but there are so many times in big occasions where benzema fails to turn up. When it comes to talent, he has few problems. For me he doesn't have the mentality of a big player and certainly not the mentality required to be a main player for Madrid. Look at how Ronaldo took the pressure and booing from the fans, he used it to propel and motivate him. Ramos does the same as does pepe and Alonso keepos calm during criticism and keeps playing the way he knows he can. Big players have different ways of coping with tough situations, benzema for me disappears. But like I said, I think (and hope) that is improving. I would say ibra, and van persie are as creative as him too and manzukic works very well for Bayern also, perhaps not as creative but by his hard work and the way he holds the ball up.
This is Madrid's fault
If he's not bought over 50+M and wanked all over the summer, he's not big enough. Come to think of it, you have alot of very good players in the past, but it always seems to me that you madridnista will never be satisfied, kinda like a spoiled kid playing FM, you only appreciate it if he "homegrown" or "BPITW"
He's a very good striker, but probably overrated by some who fancy him as the best striker in the world. Can't help but wonder if he'd benefit from a move to the likes of PSG or Chelsea, where he would be the main attraction.
Of course Madrid have to take some blame, but i have mentioned before names off players that have dealt with the pressure so its up to him too.. And by big enough i don't mean the money at all, i mean the mentality to thrive on pressure and criticism. Why would i give a shit how much money is spent on him, it has nothing to do with me. Also "you madridnista will never be satisfied, kinda like a spoiled kid playing FM, you only appreciate it if he "homegrown" or "BPITW", err thanks for that, even though you have never met me i guess i am spoiled because you say so, even though i praise the players as much as possible and support the team no matter what happen, where we finish or even if we get hammered 6-2 or 5-0. Maybe we should be less spoiled like you lot and treat the players with more respect like moyes and fellaini are treated. You know what, scratch that. We should be less spoiled like ye and hire a plane to fly over the ground saying the names of all the players and mangers and saying we want them out. That would be less spoilt imo, because i really wish i was less so.
I really don't think anyone would consider him to be the best. I really hope he has a good career at Madrid because i like him and feel sorry for him at times as the Spanish press is ruthless with shy people like him. He would be better at those clubs you mentioned, but if he were at Bayern or barca his situation would be similar to Madrid imo. If we signed aguero or suarez then i think we might become more disjointed as they are better players and more individualistic, so i think in a way it is better to have a team player like him for more balance. i think Ronaldo preferred him to higuain as higuain always wanted to score himself, and it could be similar with those too, although they perhaps aren't as goal hungry as higuain, i still fell they play in a less team orientated way than benzema. Since November benzema has been playing consistently well imo, so im happy but i just feel he is lacking the mental strength to be among the elite strikers.
To be fair, he's doing alright, even for Madrid's standard (I might be wrong, not watching too many games, but he does look Madrid's class even though he's no Ronaldo/Bale) and I don't think he's under any pressure of sort. My point is, Benzema and Madrid is just normal course of football, very good player in a very good club. There's no problem, it's you fans that's making him looks like a problem, probably because you don't think he's a big enough names"
And apology, the spoiled part wasn't meant at you, but to be honest, that is the general view I have on the majority of Madrid fans (and not only Madrid, probably it happens with all major clubs) that you (or we) could always find something to moan.
Just take a look at how we moan on Fletcher, John O'shea, Valencia, etc. Benzema just sticking out because he's actually a bigger name than Valencia, Fletch, and the rest.
EDIT: Would you agree if I say that Madrid's attacking player got more pressure than their defensive counterpart? Probably because it's where the big names galactico purchase are, do you guys complains if your defence is far from Europe's best as to compared with your offence?
He's a mental midget to put it simply. Not a lot of composure in front of goal, he misses about 10 clear goals a season, often struggles against top teams, but he's been a 20-20 forward in two, potentially three seasons since he's been here. I don't know how he does it. 2011-12 was his best year but with ZZ this season he's improved a lot. I wouldn't want to call him a 9.5 because that's a disservice to Baggio, but I can't think of any forward like him in football.
I think some people tend to romanticise his time at OL. Benz was the alpha forward there, a big target for goals. His technique and link-up ability was never as refined as it was now. Benz was just more aggressive and physically better than he has ever been in Madrid. It comes with the role on the team, obviously, but Benzema has improved his technical skills greatly since he was 20.
I think some people tend to romanticise his time at OL. Benz was the alpha forward there, a big target for goals. His technique and link-up ability was never as refined as it was now. Benz was just more aggressive and physically better than he has ever been in Madrid. It comes with the role on the team, obviously, but Benzema has improved his technical skills greatly since he was 20.
He's the kind of forward that is perfect for the football Real play IMO. They made the right choice by keeping him and selling Higuain. He's link-up play is brilliant.
Another one of those games where his weakness (finishing) is emphasised negatively so much...
Did he even miss a good chance today? Wouldn't say he played well but I can't remember any bad misses...maybe I've forgotten one.
If he performs poorly or misses a few chances, it's magnified out of proportion. For some absurd reason, some think he's an average player, but in reality he's still had a very good season.
meanwhile Ronaldo gets 1 goal from 14 attempts.
Harsh on Benzema if you ask me, he didn't really have any clear cut chances.
Harsh on Benzema if you ask me, he didn't really have any clear cut chances.
Disappointing performance yesterday. (Not fully fit.)
He's a very good asset to have in terms of linking play and works best with Ronaldo, but he doesn't have the sort of killer mentality you would want as a first team striker. He's had a very good season, but it wouldn't surprise me if Real Madrid were to buy competition for him. Either that, or they'll use Morata more as Benzema was clearly tired towards the last two months of the season.
He's a very good asset to have in terms of linking play and works best with Ronaldo, but he doesn't have the sort of killer mentality you would want as a first team striker. He's had a very good season, but it wouldn't surprise me if Real Madrid were to buy competition for him. Either that, or they'll use Morata more as Benzema was clearly tired towards the last two months of the season.
To be honest, I felt he was ignored at crucial times by his teammates, Bale and Ronnie especially. He wasn't very good, I'll agree to that, but I thought he wasn't sollicited enough. I don't quite agree with the 'killer mentality' comment though, I think he has a bit of a laid back demeanour that might give that impression but I think he's got very good instincts in the box. Actually, makes me remember I think I saw a stat saying he touched 1 ball in the box last night, which isn't enough for that type of player.
Yeah, he didn't look fully fit to me and looked to be playing with pain, and I respect him a lot for that.
The touch you're on about was a good pass to Bale (or was it Ronaldo?). In terms of the season he's had, it's definitely been a massive improvement over last season and it's arguably better than his 11/12 season. However, I still don't think he possesses a "killer mentality", which would take him up a level. You're spot on with his laid back demeanour, it also works against players like Ozil for example, but that isn't what I'm judging him on. It's rather the fact that he misses easy chances that he should really score and goes through inconsistent spells (sometimes 7+ games) where his goal output is very poor. It's just that, when it comes to Benzema, I'm harsh when it comes to judging him. I either praise him or criticise him heavily (unfairly sometimes). On this issue, Ancelotti's treatment of Benzema is miles better than the intimidation tactic deployed by Mourinho, who was a brutal dictator IMO.
I think there will be a point where Real Madrid will look at a striker. Benzema's neat interplay and link-up suit the side, but when you look at players like Suárez for example, why wouldn't you want to upgrade when they are a better package? Either that, or use Morata, who has done well this season, to give Benzema more time to rest.
Thoughts on the World Cup he's having?
I think he's been the best centre-forward in the competition. Immense link-up and hold-up play. Looks in excellent shape.
I think he's been the best centre-forward in the competition. Immense link-up and hold-up play. Looks in excellent shape.
benzema has always been a fecking assasin of a finisher, one of the most accurate shooters in the world fullstop. He's much more clinical and well placed in his shots then Ronaldo, always been too imo. It's too bad he doesn't have the work ethic, or the fire, because his touch is berbatovesque, always has been, and he's got a lethal blend of a killer touch, a killer shot, and pretty good all around technical ability/ athletic ability (strength, speed). He's just had to play second fiddle for too long at madrid and suffered for it in his development. He's too inconsistent and can get disoriented from play against top teams if he's expected to lead the lines like he does for france.
i don't think he'll perform very well against a top team in the knock out stages. If he had to come against say Uruguay, i'm certain he'd be completely marked out of the game.
i don't think he'll perform very well against a top team in the knock out stages. If he had to come against say Uruguay, i'm certain he'd be completely marked out of the game.
Pretty much agree with all of this. I can't think of many who are better at almost always hitting the ball firmly and accurately. His one-touch finishing and finishing on the stretch is insane.
I really like him. There's not really anything you can label as a real weakness to his game. Even all of the required physical attributes are there. But like you say, you can just see him having an extremely isolated and quiet game if/when France play someone with proper quality.
His best start to a season ever, IMO.
Sorry for doubting you, Benzema.
Sorry for doubting you, Benzema.
Yeah,he's really come on and is a vital cog in the RM machine.
Great goal too.
I think he is in the conversation for the best #9/lone striker in the game right now.
He's the player I want us to sign instead of Falcao come the summer. He has the necessary pace which we are lacking, relatively young and most importantly; a marquee forward who would be devastating here. Acquiring him is another matter, but then again we didn't expect to sign either di Maria or Falcao (though in fairness they both have a common denominator being Mendes clients).
I can't really think of a more suitable striker in world football with a big pedigree that isn't too unrealistic.
I can't really think of a more suitable striker in world football with a big pedigree that isn't too unrealistic.
I called him "The worst world-class striker" in the last couple of years
But to be honest he's brilliant this season
But to be honest he's brilliant this season
I think Suarez and Aguero are better. Benzema has a bit more trouble getting separation to get open than those guys, which makes a huge difference.
He's a great player but I think he might be just a bit slowed down by Bale coming back, though.
Not really. It's the way he has adapted his game to suit the team.