OFFICIAL: Al Ittihad announce signing of Karim Benzema

Just hours after Karim Benzema bade farewell to Real Madrid in an intimate ceremony, Saudi club Al Ittihad announced they had signed the French international.

Benzema wore the Madrid jersey for 14 seasons, but finally decided that it was time to close that chapter of his life, at the age of 35. The star had been pegged with a move to the Saudi league for several weeks now, despite speculations about whether or not the deal would go through.

Now, on the same day Benzema officially left the Spanish side, Saudi champions Al Ittihad announced on their Twitter the arrival of the star striker.  The Saudi club's multi-million dollar offer would have been difficult to refuse for Benzema, who will receive a salary of 200 million euros for 2 seasons.

In other words, the former Lyon player will receive 100 million per year. In this new competition, he will meet again with Cristiano Ronaldo, although this time as rivals. The Portuguese striker is the star of Al Nassr, Al Ittihad's rival. The Middle East continues to raise the bar with the arrival of Benzema.

They are linked with several other high profile players, like Leo Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, but it remains to be seen which of the stars will join Benzema in the Middle East.

 

June 6, 2023