Karim Benzema continued his excellent form this season with another two goals for Real Madrid in their Champions League semi-final first-leg game against Manchester City.
The French forward took his tally to 41 for the campaign with a well-taken left-footed volley, before performing a 'Panenka' penalty to keep his side in the tie. This was after Kevin de Bruyne, Gabriel Jesus, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva all struck for the Citizens, while Vinicius Junior also netted as City came out 4-3 winners at the Etihad Stadium.
It has been a sensational season for the 34-year-old who is currently the top scorer in La Liga and the Champions League and he could be in the running for a number of awards come the end of the campaign. Another prize Benzema could be up for is the Ballon d'Or, which has been won by Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo in the last 12 years.
Real Madrid team-mate Luka Modric is the only exception, after he reached the final of the 2018 World Cup with Croatia and won a number of major honours in the same season. When speaking about the award last October, Benzema admitted that it his an "ambition" of his to win the Ballon d'Or one day and claimed he shares the same goals as Messi and Ronaldo.
"We have to think about it when we have ambition," he said of the Ballon d'Or. "But it doesn't have to be an obsession that refocuses you on yourself, on saying that you absolutely have to shine individually and score goals for yourself. If you have to win it, it's for who you are, what you show on the pitch, what I do.
"This is because the previous ten, twelve years, there was only Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. They were at such a level that hardly anyone could bother them. The situation has changed. A lot of players have shown off without being over the top."
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Ronaldo has previously spoken similarly of winning the Ballon d'Or back in 2018, saying: "I said many times, winning a sixth Ballon d'Or is not an obsession. And I do not ask the question in these terms.
"I already know, in my heart, that I am one of the best players in history. Of course I want to win, this sixth Ballon d'Or!
"It would be a lie to tell you the opposite. I work for that. As I work to score goals and win games without being an obsession. The Ballon d'Or, yes, I think I deserve it."
Meanwhile, Messi, back in 2013, also admitted it isn't an 'obsession'. He said: "I want to win the trophy even more times, but it’s not an obsession. Well, at least not for now. I want to enjoy the present. We will see what happens in a few months’ time."
