Benzema, along with 2018 world champion N’golo Kante and the rest of the Saudi team, were received by local officials including Erbil Governor Omed Khoshnaw at the city’s airport. The 2022 Balon D’or winner was warmly received by his fans who jumped at the chance to greet the star and take selfies with him.
Al-Ittihad will face one of Iraq’s oldest and most decorated teams al-Quwa al-Jawiya on Monday for what will be a decisive game. If Benzema and his team win, they will advance to the next stage of the tournament. Jawiya is in second place in its group, behind Ittihad, and is looking for a win to increase its chances of advancing.
The match will be played at 3 pm local time, in Erbil's Franso Hariri stadium.
Al-Ittihad is coming into the match after losing 1-0 to Shabab in their last match of the Saudi league on Friday night.
The legendary Benzema, who is known by his nickname al-Hukuma (the government) among Middle Eastern football enthusiasts, played for European giant Real Madrid for 14 seasons and won five European Champions League titles with them. He also scored 353 goals for Madrid’s whites.
In October 2022, he was crowned best footballer in the world winning the Balon d’Or, awarded by France Football, after leading his team to Spanish and European gold.
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