Real Madrid should not be ashamed to be reliant upon talisman Karim Benzema, according to Los Blancos head coach Carlo Ancelotti.
Frenchman Benzema helped Madrid reach the LaLiga semi-finals, with 12 points from Barcelona, playing a small game.
The former Lyon striker also lifted the LaLiga giants with his hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Chelsea in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final at Stamford Bridge.
Indeed, he became the first player to hit the treble against the Blues in the European Championships as he joined Cristiano Ronaldo, Luiz Adriano and Lionel Messi as the fourth player to hold consecutive hat-tricks in the Champions League following his heroism in the last 16 against them. Paris Saint-Germain.
Only Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski (46) has netted more times in Europe’s top five leagues in all competitions than Benzema, who has scored 37 goals in most games.
Ancelotti praised his star as he asked questions about whether Erling Haaland could sell him out of Madrid for Benzema’s actions.
“What a question … I’m sorry I can’t answer that,” he said.
“But I can say that Benzema is a modern striker, previously number 9 came in and finished everything that happened.
“Karim is what modern football wants for a striker, shooting, playing, defensive career, where the ball is … It’s a perfect picture of what a midfielder should be today.”
Benzema and Vinicius Junior have made a tremendous partnership with the campaign, with the duo scoring five goals in the Champions League.
Ancelotti has spoken of the likes of Los Blancos stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale as he points to his new pair as game stars this season.
“The season says there are two striking strikers, Vinicius and Benzema,” he added.
“In the past we had Cristiano, Bale … To say that we depend on Benzema is true, there is no need to hide it. I am very happy to rely on Benzema”.
Benzema has netted 11 times in the Champions League this season, most of which the Frenchman has done in Europe’s top club competitions and the number of goals he has scored in the last two programs combined.
He will look to add to that number at home to Chelsea on Tuesday as Ancelotti aim to make it to the eighth Champions League semi-final – which includes most of any coach in history, along with Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola.
