Karim Benzema turned up a terrific performance on his return to international duty as France cruised to a comfortable win against Wales on Wednesday night, despite the fact that he didn’t score and missed a penalty. The French striker, who last played for his national side back in October 2015 against Armenia, is a remarkable addition to Didier Deschamps’ side right in the nick of time.
The World Cup winning manager delivered a message to the rest of Europe by deploying an attack consisting of Karim Benzema, Kylian Mbappe, and Antoine Griezmann. Les Bleus expectedly put up a dominant display of their might as the game progressed. Early on in the match, it was evident that Benzema would be no different for France than he had been for Real Madrid over the previous seasons, and he was involved in everything the world champions did offensively, connecting up well with Mbappe and Griezmann.
On multiple occasions, the Barcelona attacker was virtually operating as a fourth midfielder, since his side was well-balanced. However, they were aided by Wales being down a man for much of the evening. After Nico Williams was sent out for handling the ball inside the penalty area. France were awarded a penalty, which Benzema failed to convert. Meanwhile, Mbappe and Griezmann managed to get their names on the scoresheet, with Ousmane Dembele securing the victory late on.
France already had a squad with overwhelming depth, and their forwards are nothing short of world class. Griezmann had 17 goals and 7 assists for Barcelona in 20-21. Meanwhile Mbappe had the first season in his career wherein he scored 40+ goals. With the addition of Benzema, who was the light of hope in Real Madrid’s woeful season, France seem to have a new-found swagger for this year’s European Championship.
Madrid’s talismanic striker recorded 30 goals this season, which is sufficient to prove his worth for the national team. With these three combining, it would be a joyous sight for France supporters this summer. Benzema’s ability to link up in the final third will be a great complement to Griezmann’s creativity and Mbappe’s threat of pace and explosiveness. Overall, the trio comes off as a factor of inspiration for France in the Euros.
