12 December 2023 , 01:21
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Karim Benzema refused to name Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in his dream XI - despite starring alongside the latter for several years at Real Madrid.
Benzema joined Al-Ittihad from the Spanish giants during the summer and was asked to name his dream XI in a video for the Saudi Pro League side's social media team. The Frenchman could name any superstars he wanted - not just those who he's played with.
Cristiano Ronaldo seemed like an obvious pick but was snubbed. Benzema played alongside the five-time Ballon d'Or winner for nine years at Madrid, where they helped the club win three consecutive Champions League titles under Zinedine Zidane.
Benzema also had no room for Messi, despite the Argentine winning 10 La Liga titles with Barcelona. Although the Portuguese Ronaldo was overlooked, the Brazilian Ronaldo - who famously inspired his country to glory at the 2002 World Cup - did get the nod.
One of the reasons why Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi were snubbed was because Benzema picked himself to play alongside the Brazilian Ronaldo, also known as 'R9'. To be fair to Benzema, he is a five-time Champions League winner and a Ballon d'Or owner.
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Ronaldo isn't the only Brazilian to be picked by Benzema, as he's also called for the services of Ronaldinho, Dani Alves and Marcelo. Benzema shared the captaincy duties with Marcelo at Madrid during their Champions League-winning campaign two years ago.
The other three Frenchmen to make the list are Chelsea icon Claude Makelele, World Cup winner Paul Pogba and Zidane - his ex-manager at Madrid. Long before his coaching career, Zidane inspired his country to victory at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000.
The final players to make the XI are Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer, Porto's Pepe and Sevilla's Sergio Ramos, with Benzema playing alongside Pepe and Ramos at Madrid. Neuer, 37, Pepe, 40, and Ramos, 37, are all still going strong - despite their advancing years.
Benzema has also snubbed Lionel Messi (Getty Images)What do you think about Karim Benzema's dream XI? Let us know in the comments below!
Despite snubbing Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema is a huge fan of his former colleague and the impact he's had on football in Saudi Arabia. The Manchester United legend was one of the first big names to quit European football for the Saudi Pro League.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr in January, the likes Roberto Firmino, Neymar, Sadio Mane, Jordan Henderson, Edouard Mendy, Ruben Neves, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Fabinho, and Amyeric Laporte have agreed lucrative moves to Saudi Arabia.
"There are many good players... every year they raise the level," said Benzema on joining Al-Ittihad. "I saw the World Cup, Saudi Arabia played very well, great games, especially against Argentina (beating them 2-1). Obviously, they have very good players."
On Cristiano Ronaldo's influence, Benzema added: "It is also important that Cristiano Ronaldo is in Saudi Arabia, because he is a very important player. He brings a lot to football in this country and that will raise his level of play even more."
Karim Benzema's dream XI: Manuel Neuer; Dani Alves, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo; Claude Makelele, Paul Pogba; Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldinho; Ronaldo, Karim Benzema.