Karim Benzema Injury Shows Just How Vulnerable Real Madrid Are

A couple of minutes before the end of normal time at Braga’s iconic Estadio AXA last Thursday, there were a few hearts in mouths, but it wasn’t because Portugal were sitting on a 1-0 lead over visiting Denmark, and within touching distance of an automatic qualification place for Euro 2016.

Cristiano Ronaldo was laid out, having landed awkwardly after an aerial challenge with Simon Kjaer. A hushed murmur descended over the stadium as Portugal’s medical staff attended to the captain and helped him from the pitch.

Happily, he jogged back on shortly after, but the collective sense of dread that followed the initial incident again underlined Ronaldo’s huge importance not only to his country, but to his club.

If Rafa Benitez was watching the images through his fingers on the sofa, his relief can’t have lasted too long.

The news came through that Karim Benzema, who pulled up holding his left thigh during France’s 4-0 win over Armenia on the same night before being replaced by Olivier Giroud, would miss at least three weeks of action, as reported by Marca.

In some respects, it could be argued that losing Benzema is even worse than having to pass on Ronaldo’s services.

Benzema’s worth is even more apparent than usual for two reasons at the moment. The first is the lack of direct cover for him at centre-forward, a situation compounded by the exit of Javier Hernandez after a mixed loan spell from Manchester United.

Oscar del Pozo/Associated Press

The second is that Benzema is La Liga’s top scorer as it stands, with six goals already in six matches, which make him responsible for 40 per cent of Real Madrid’s total goal tally in the competition to date.

Benzema is about much more than goals, of course. He underlined it on that very night in Nice, setting up Antoine Griezmann for France’s opener before bagging two himself later on.

Yet to talk about which of the pair Benitez could less do without is to largely miss the point. Benzema and Ronaldo are very much a package at the Bernabeu, something that former coach Carlo Ancelotti touched on last week in describing them as “the perfect attacking duo” in an interview with Canal+ (h/t FourFourTwo).

It’s nothing new to suggest, as the former Milan and Chelsea boss did, that Benzema allows “Ronaldo to shine and score,” but it’s a pertinent reminder that the Lyon-born striker’s value is to the collective, rather than as an individual.

It’s an interesting development when one considers that the 27-year-old was gaining a reputation for having a big ego in his final year at his hometown club, before making the move to Spain.

Benzema is a clinical finisher, even if his numbers will never be up at the superhuman levels of Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. His current hot streak in front of goal is just that; it won’t go on to define his career, and doesn’t mean he’s playing better or has become more important to El Real.

It shows that like all truly elite-level players, he works hard to eliminate weaknesses in his game. That two of his recent strikes, the derby opener at Atletico Madrid and his first against Armenia, have been emphatic headers speaks volumes for his growth.

However, it remains that vision and intuition that marks Benzema out as a player apart. Quite simply, there is no other centre-forward in world football quite like him. It’s the reason that Arsenal continued to ask the question in the summer, way past the point after which Benzema provided the response to where his future laid (see the below post from his own Twitter account).

Cristiano Ronaldo needs no reminding of this, and he would have been one of the first to back Ancelotti’s recent words. He values highly Benzema’s contribution, and he knows that he feeds him like nobody else.

The respect between the pair is entirely mutual, as demonstrated when Benzema lavishly praised Ronaldo for his five-goal haul against Granada back in April, per BBC Sport.

The use of the word "phenomenon" by Benzema on this occasion was not accidental. Rather than being your average footballer-speak filler word, its use is pointed, referencing the nickname of the Frenchman’s idol—“the real” Ronaldo, as Benzema called the Brazilian centre-forward (per L’Equipe, in French) when acknowledging him as he realised his own childhood dream of signing for El Real, back in 2009.

Francisco Seco/Associated Press

That may have got the new team-mates off on the wrong foot six years ago, but their relationship is solid now. Their on-pitch complicity cuts both ways, with Cristiano Ronaldo returning the compliment for Benzema as his top assist provider, per the club's official site).

On an individual level, Benzema has come a long way since then too. He cut an awkward figure when he met his Real Madrid reference point at the Bernabeu shortly after arriving at the club, but he has carved his own niche in the 10-time European champions’ history.

In February 2015 last year, when he scored in a 2-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna, Benzema surpassed Ronaldo’s 83 La Liga goal tally for Los Merengues. As we said above, the goals will never be the bottom line with Benzema, but this milestone meant a lot.

So what does Benzema’s absence mean in the short-term? It could be a chance for Jese in a more advanced role, while Cristiano Ronaldo or Gareth Bale might be used more centrally. The two superstars being used as a front two is unlikely, but cannot be totally ruled out, especially as modest Levante visit on Saturday.

Whichever it is to be, Benitez needs to find a solution. Benzema will miss the first (and possibly even the second) meeting with Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, as well as a testing trip to Celta Vigo, where Barcelona were recently humbled 4-1.

The key is to make sure that Ronaldo is not left isolated as he has been on occasion when used in a centre-forward role for his country. That is what appears to be the greatest danger for Los Merengues in Benzema’s absence.