Karim Benzema’s record against English teams is quite amazing to say the least. The Frenchman faces Manchester City with Real Madrid in the semi-final of the Champions League on Wednesday evening and knows all too well what it feels like to score against an English club.
Why Man City should be terrified of Benzema on Wednesday?
In his career, Benzema faced an English opponent a total of 26 times. The striker has a positive balance against English teams. Thirteen times he won, seven times ended in a draw and only six times Benzema lost.
In addition, Benzema also proved very successful against the English on an individual level in recent years. In those 26 games, he scored no fewer than thirteen times. He also provided three assists. Liverpool turned out to be his favorite opponent. Benzema scored seven goals in eight appearances against that side.
| Opponent | Matches | W | D | L | Goals | Assists |
| Manchester City | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 |
In total, Benzema also played eight times against Manchester City and that team is also very well disposed to him. At least on an individual level. The Real Madrid striker scored six times against City and was the principal twice. However, he lost three times, compared to two wins. On Wednesday, both teams will decide who will be in the Champions League final on June 10.
Walker: “Of course Guardiola’s words hurt me”
Manchester City defender Kyle Walker looked forward to the return against Real Madrid in the semi-finals of the Champions League at the press conference on Tuesday. The experienced right back also addressed the statements of his manager Pep Guardiola.
Walker has been a fixture in Manchester City’s defense for six years and has made nearly 250 official appearances for the club. This season, however, Guardiola has been tinkering with the filling in of his rearguard, at the expense of the Englishman.
The Spanish tactician explained in April that Walker is incapable of playing on the inside like John Stones or Rico Lewis. “You need certain qualities for that. Kyle will always have a role in our team, at sixty he will still be the fastest. But he is not capable of this.”
On a visit to Real Madrid, Walker was just back in the base. On Tuesday he was confronted with Guardiola’s statements. “Sometimes it’s about personal insights. In football you don’t always agree. But what he has done for my career and for the Manchester City club over the past six years has been amazing,” said Walker.
“But did it hurt? Of course it hurt me. I’d be lying if I said no. Of course that was the case, but then you just have to go back to basics. You go back to why he brought you to this club. And then you have to prove him wrong. I think I’ve done that in recent games. I stayed as professional as possible,” he concluded.
