Benzema che gave an extensive interview to ‘GQ Magazine’ before he was awarded the Ballon d’Or. The striker admitted that his start at Real Madrid was not easy.
His childhood heroes
“I would say that my heroes are my father and my mother. Because they had a really bad time, really bad. He doesn’t have one soccer player to follow. I won’t tell you that I always manage myself, but coming from where I come from, I have to excel at something. At 15 or 16 I started to be inspired by Ronaldo, Zidane and others to learn, but I never said: “I want to be like him””.
Benzema as father
“There is a soccer anecdote with my son Ibrahim. He is very good at football, but when I train with him, I am not always very nice. If he does not listen to me when I pass him, control him, etc., I act like we’re playing real football. I’m not worth a “Dad, I’ll cry” or “I’m sad”. Things like that. I’m happy because my father is the same to me. This is how I treat my son , although at the end of practice I hug him if he gets it [ríe]”.
The moments that marked him the most in his career
“The first goal in the Champions League with Lyon. (…) Later, when I made my debut in Madrid. Those were extraordinary moments. Also the first goal I scored. Then there are the latest ones in the Champions League. Although I had won four Champions Leagues before, we had a great team. The fifth one was more special. Not that I was more involved in it, but I felt that.”
His evolution at Real Madrid
“The beginnings were difficult, very difficult, because I was very young and I was alone in Madrid. I did not know the language. The first period was very complicated, but it also forced me to reflect and say: “It is not easy. I have the talent, everything I need to succeed at this club, but I need to know what I need to improve to continue to grow. If I continue at the level I’m at now, I’m not going to succeed.”
Changes in their training or in matches
“Maybe now my training is a little less, but it’s normal. It’s my age. When I was 21, I didn’t need to train like crazy. I mean how football was before, now it’s different. Then, of course, I had to I have to change my style a little bit, I have to adapt”.
His future after leaving football
“I don’t know. Maybe help the youngsters to train, guide them to become good footballers who understand that being the best is really more than scoring goals. I don’t think we train the youngsters well players in football today. If you ask them, now they just want to score goals. They all want to score. But that’s not all. I don’t want to be away from football.”
Source: La Verdad
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
