France boss Didier Deschamps says striker Karim Benzema is as important to his national side as Cristiano Ronaldo is to Portugal’s.
The Real Madrid man started in Les Bleu’s 1-0 win over Ronaldo’s side in Friday night’s friendly between the two countries. Matieu Valbuena scored a late winner for the French.
Speaking to the press ahead of the game, Deschamps had plenty of words of praise for 27-year-old Benzema and hailed his influence on the team. The former Lyon man, who was linked with a move to Arsenal over the summer, has netted 25 goals in 78 appearances for his country since making his debut in March 2007.
“The presence of Karim is very important. He’s a top-level player who has international experience. He’s not going to resolve everything by himself, but Karim is Karim and I prefer having him with us,” Deschamps stated.
And he continued: “It’s like with Portugal. If [Cristiano] Ronaldo isn’t there, it’s not the same thing. In order to be efficient, France will always need Karim to be on top of his game.”
Benzema opened his account for Real Madrid this season in the 5-0 win over Real Betis last weekend and will be looking to add to his tally when Los Blancos take on Espanyol after the international break.
