2024-03-20 15:30:34
What if he was the chef’s surprise this summer? Faced with the complications in establishing his list and the potential refusals of clubs to release their players like that of Real Madrid for the Olympic Games, Thierry Henry received a curious application this Tuesday evening: that of a certain Karim Benzema. Could the 2022 Ballon d’Or, which has a very turbulent history in blue, really make the Games? We take stock.
How did he apply?
To tell the truth, when it came to imagining the three potential big-caliber players to accompany the French Olympic team, no one thought too much about him. Unlike the most mentioned names, from Kylian Mbappé to Antoine Griezmann. And then, Karim Benzema appeared at a press conference by Didier Deschamps, Monday in Clairefontaine, when a journalist asked the Blues coach if “KB9”, like Raphaël Varane or Hugo Lloris, could apply for a place in the OJ.
DD’s response: “If they want to and Thierry needs them, why not? You have to ask Thierry. The goal is to have the best team. They can be candidates like many.”
Without really knowing where the former Real Madrid player, now in Saudi Arabia, stands in relation to possible participation. The answer arrived Tuesday evening, on the set of the Chaine l’Equipe, when journalist Virginie Sainsily mentioned an exchange by message with Benzema: “The Olympics? Why not, of course, it could be great! »
This looks exactly like an official candidacy from the former French international (97 caps, 37 goals). With the wish to better conclude his story in blue, he who had chosen to announce his international retirement after the World Cup in Qatar, for which he had withdrawn at the last moment due to an injury. Bitter farewells, Benzema having expressed his disagreement with Didier Deschamps on the management of this injury.
Had the French Federation ruled out the presence of Benzema?
No, not in fact. Despite his international retirement and his thwarted history with the France team, Karim Benzema was part of a very expanded list concocted in particular by Thierry Henry a month ago. Inside, around a hundred names likely to be called, which will be reduced to 50 in May, before the final announcement at the beginning of July with 18 players and 4 reserves. Benzema was included in this first expanded list like many other high-caliber players.
For the Olympics this summer, only three players over the age of 23 will be allowed to be present. In this game, the 2022 Golden Ball is not one of the first options, even though the coach has targeted offensive players to complete his squad. Kylian Mbappé, Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann have always been the three names favored by Thierry Henry.
While the draw for the groups for the Olympic football tournament takes place this Wednesday, Thierry Henry spoke for more than 2 hours with our readers.
With proven ease and confidence, the Bleuets coach did not avoid any subject
➡️ pic.twitter.com/g3ajE8e5OD— Le Parisien (@le_Parisien) March 20, 2024
In the event of a definitive refusal by the clubs to release them, Benzema is not the first of the B options either. No discussion, at this stage, has been initiated between the player and Thierry Henry on the question. But yet, no one has ruled out their potential participation.
As for the French Football Federation, as it stands, his candidacy is not “a subject” and he is subject to the same rules as other players over 23, that is to say that his Al-Ittihad club (Saudi Arabia) agrees to let him play. As for Thierry Henry, the coach of the French Olympic team should in any case face many questions during the draw for the competition this Wednesday evening. From a source close to the French staff, the 1998 world champion should not speak at length about the Benzema case.
Does he have the level to be selected?
Finally, maybe this is where it could get stuck. If the 2022 Ballon d’Or is undoubtedly one of the very best French players of the last decade, his arrival in Saudi Arabia last summer considerably distanced him from the highest level. By the level of the Saudi Pro League initially, the shortcomings of which are still glaring, but above all by its situation at club.
KB9 has only played 17 matches since last August with Al-Ittihad. Entangled in a conflicting situation with his coach Marcelo Gallardo, the 36-year-old striker was regularly excluded from the professional group, while losing the captaincy and being criticized in the media. Latest episode to date, repetitive injuries since the start of 2024. Reinstated in the squad, he was only able to play three matches in the last eleven matches.
If Ramon Planes, the brand new sporting director of the Jeddah club, told us at the beginning of March that there was “no Benzema problem” at Al-Ittihad, all the signals for the moment point to reverse. It remains to be seen whether Thierry Henry believes that Benzema’s talent and experience can be enough to earn a place in the French selection at the Olympics.
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