Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema scored 10 goals in 11 games at the start of 2023, but just before the latest international break, he only managed to score one goal (against Liverpool) in five games.
In Madrid’s last two games, the 35-year-old scored two hat-tricks, against Real Valladolid in the 6-0 win in La Liga and against Barcelona in the 4-0 win in the Copa del Rey.
He didn’t start the season like a player who won the Ballon d’Or for 2022 due to injuries. Before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Benzema scored six goals in 12 games, an average of one goal every 159 minutes.
After back-to-back hat-tricks, Madrid’s No.9 now has 17 goals in 18 games in 2023 and an average of a goal every 89 minutes.
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski is the current top scorer in La Liga with 17 goals, while the Frenchman has 14 in the league.
With 11 league games to go, Benzema can still catch Lewandowski to finish top scorer in La Liga for 2022-23.
Kieran Quaile | GSFN
