Karim Benzema happy at Al Ittihad amid exit speculations

Chelsea and Manchester United are linked with a move for Karim Benzema

Amidst speculation about his departure from the team, Karim Benzema is content at Al-Itthad.

is looking into his alternatives during the January transfer window following six disappointing months at Al Ittihad, a Saudi Pro League team.

The 2022 Ballon d’Or winner has tallied 15 goals in 24 appearances across all tournaments since entering the affluent league as a free agent, but the 36-year-old striker is not satisfied with how his time in Saudi Arabia is going thus far.

According to reports, the team is hesitant to allow their highly valued summer addition to go, either permanently or on loan.

Jordan Henderson, another Saudi Pro League recruit, is one player who has succeeded in forcing a departure from the Gulf state by negotiating a release from his contract, in this case with Al Ettifaq.

Al Ittihad has had an uphill struggle and currently sits seventh in the standings, 25 points behind leaders Al Hilal, who won the championship the previous year. With two and a half years left on his deal, Benzema has come under fire from the Saudi press for the way he performed.

According to sources who spoke with ESPN, Benzema may be able to play in the Premier League as a number of teams, including Chelsea, have expressed interest in the experienced forward.

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The former France international is rumoured to not be considering a return to Real Madrid, where he reportedly spent 14 years.

Following the passage of tropical hurricane Belal, which forced the cancellation of all flights into and out of Mauritius, Benzema remains stranded there. When Benzema is capable, he is going to accompany the team and manager Marcelo Gallardo at Al Ittihad’s training facility in Dubai.

Benzema sued Gérald Darmanin, the interior minister of France, earlier this week for blasphemy after the actor was allegedly connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.

In October, Darmanin stated that Benzema had “a notorious link” to the Brotherhood, a pan-Arab Islamist organisation that won elections in Egypt one year after the 2011 uprising. This was due to Benzema’s early-war online support for the Gazan people during the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Benzema categorically denied having any connections to the Muslim Brotherhood or any of its members in his complaint, which he submitted to the Court of Justice of the Republic on Monday. The particular court for cases involving government ministers is the CJR.

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