TRANSFER TRACKER STATUS: Report
Is Major League Soccer in Karim Benzema’s future? The Real Madrid striker certainly hinted at that possibility during an interview with ESPN.
"I like the USA. Football is getting better and better there. But am I telling you I will sign there? Right now, I am in Madrid," he said.
Indeed, the French national team striker is under contract with the La Liga giants until June 2023 and Benzema admits he doesn’t spend much time looking too far into the future. He originally joined Real Madrid from Lyon in 2009.
"I take year by year. As long as I have this desire, this joy and I am loving football, I continue,” he said. “I don't look at age or what is happening. It is all down to how I feel physically. I will never force it. I am 33; I will turn 34 in December. I continue to play, I feel better and better, so I have to continue. And to make the most of it.”
Benzema would bring a sterling résumé with him, should he opt to continue his career in MLS. He’s been named French Player of the Year three times, won the UEFA Champions League four times, among 13 overall titles in his career at Madrid, where he’s the club’s fifth all-time leading goalscorer. Benzema has also tallied 33 goals in 92 caps for France.
Like fine wine, Benzema appears to be getting better with age. He boasts a remarkable 31 goals and 12 assists for club and country in 2021 and is a contender for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award, where he's attempting to become the first Frenchman to win since Zinedine Zidane did 23 years ago.
