BENZEMA KEEPING HIGAUIN OUT

By admin on

Karim Benzema has been in spectacular form this season so much so that he has been able to keep out regular goal scorer Gonzalo Higuain out of the side. He once again proved that he has the mantle to take part in the big matches and score regularly.

The 1-0 win over Malaga was a result of the Karim Benzema goal, which proved to be enough for Real Madrid to progress to the quarter-finals. Real Madrid will be meeting Barcelona in the quarter finals of the Copa Del Ray, a competition José Mourinho is considering to be extremely important.

José Mourinho has revealed that he wants to emulate the success of Barcelona in recent seasons by being in contention for every major trophy from the end of the season and winning every single one of them. Barcelona famously achieved the sextuple a few years ago and a widely regarded to be the best team in the world. However, Real Madrid have shown that they have more than enough quality to overtake Barcelona in the league, as they have done so in the table. Real Madrid are currently lead Barcelona by five points in the la Liga table, while they are also focusing equally on the cup competitions as well.

“We played an intelligent game tonight. It was a difficult series and we showed a lot of effort to win it,” Madrid manager Jose Mourinho said after the match. More than the win, it provides José Mourinho with the opportunity to take revenge for the 3-1 home defeat his side suffered at the hands of Barcelona just before the Christmas break. He has also witnessed Barcelona lift the Club World Cup for the second time in three years, and he will be looking to bring an end to the Catalan club’s progress in this competition.

Benzema Earns Praise

By admin on

Jose Mourinho is famous for criticising attacking players who have not delivered as well as he expects. He is also quite famous for praising those who have been excellent for him. The latter seems to have happened in the case of Karim Benzema, who has finally won the praise of manager José Mourinho.

The 23-year-old striker arrived from Lyon with much fanfare, but struggled during the initial months of his Real Madrid career. It was soon speculated that he would soon be leaving Real on a loan deal, but that never materialised because Benzema was considered an important member of the squad.

Now, under José Mourinho, he seems to have taken another step in becoming one of the most important players for Real Madrid. He scored in the 3-2 win over Villarreal during the weekend, which helped Real Madrid maintain the three point advantage over Barcelona. It is extremely vital in the title race and José Mourinho seems to have understood it – he came out in full praise of the French striker, who has been in troubled times of late.

Speaking to the press after the match, José Mourinho said “Benzema has improved all-round, every aspect of his game. He is stronger, both in his body and in his mind, and understands the game a lot better. We know taht he can be a clinical striker of the ball, but he has also improved his defensive game. For me, finally the real Benzema is playing for Madrid.”

This is quite a lot of praise for the youngster who had become accustomed to criticism from coach Mourinho. He said that one of the reasons for Karim Benzema not being able to perform for the French team is because they lack a playmaker like Loic Remy.