Former Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema broke a FIFA Club World Cup goalscoring record with his strike for Al-Ittihad against Auckland City.
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- Benzema scored against Auckland City
- Steered Al-Ittihad to a 3-0 victory
- Set unique scoring record in FIFA CWC
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WHAT HAPPENED?
The French forward became the first player to score in four different FIFA Club World Cup editions with his strike in the 40th minute in a comfortable 3-0 win for the Saudi Pro League side. The scoring spree began with Brazilian forward Romarinho's deflected effort in the 29th minute, followed by former Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kante's superb strike just five minutes later. Benzema then completed the triumphant display by knocking in the third goal.
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
It is Benzema's sixth appearance in the FIFA Club World Cup after appearing with Los Blancos the previous five times. Remarkably, Benzema has won every edition that he has played, lifting the trophy in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2022.
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WHAT GIANNI INFANTINO SAID
Gianni Infantino, the FIFA President, congratulated Benzema for his remarkable achievement and wrote on Instagram: "Congratulations 🇫🇷 @karimbenzema on becoming the first player to score in 4 FIFA Club World Cups ⚽️🎖️An incredible achievement by a great player, my best wishes to you for this edition 👏 🤗"
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DID YOU KNOW?
Benzema has five goals in 10 appearances in the Club World Cup and trails Cristiano Ronaldo (7) and Gareth Bale (6) in the all-time leading top-scorers list in the competition.