“He is worth nothing next to Cristiano Ronaldo”

Al-Ittihad icon Mohamed Noor has hit out at Karim Benzema following his switch to Cristiano Ronaldo’s rivals Al-Hilal on transfer deadline day. The one-time Ballon d’Or winner joined Al-Hilal on an 18-month contract as a free agent after choosing to leave Al-Ittihad last month.

Noor spoke on the Our League is Different program, pointing out that Benzema did not offer anything in his first season with Al-Ittihad, but the fans remained behind him. He was especially critical of the nature of Benzema’s transfer, as the club did not gain a transfer fee because he moved for free.

“When Benzema came to Al-Ittihad, he did not offer anything in the first season, then things changed in the following season, thanks to the fans who helped him, stood with him, chanted his name and encouraged him. Benzema missed many penalties last season, but the fans stayed with him, supported him and encouraged him until the team won the league and cup titles.

Is it right for him to come this season and say that he doesn’t want to play with this team? With all due respect to him, he is nothing compared to (Cristiano) Ronaldo, and he is not even worth mentioning. If Benzema did not want to complete his contract with the team, the club should have benefited from the amount of his departure, at least the club should have received the remainder of the player’s contract value.

Benzema had no right to choose to move to Al-Hilal, because he did not have his contract. If he wanted to do that, he should have completed his contract first, and then he could choose whatever he wanted. Since he came and played for Al-Ittihad, I wished that Benzema would leave the Saudi League and not move to Al-Hilal in that way”, he said (via Kooora.com).

Like ex-teammate Cristiano Ronaldo has done this week, Karim Benzema embarked on a strike to force a move away from Al-Ittihad in the January transfer window. He missed their last two games prior to his deadline day switch after failing to agree on a new contract with the club.

Al-Ittihad offered the 38-year-old, who had six months left on his deal, a contract that would have essentially had him playing for free. This angered him and his representatives, and he opted to leave the club to move elsewhere in Saudi Arabia.

Cristiano Ronaldo was reportedly unhappy that Benzema was joining Al-Hilal, who sit atop the Saudi Pro League standings, and tried unsuccessfully to block his transfer. Karim Benzema scored 57 goals in 87 games for Al-Ittihad, winning the league and cup double last season.

Karim Benzema’s move triggers Cristiano Ronaldo strike action

Karim Benzema’s decision to swap Jeddah for Riyadh has left former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo fuming and prompted him to go on a strike. The former France international completed a free transfer to Al-Hilal just over two years since he joined Al-Ittihad from Real Madrid.

Benzema’s decision to join Al-Hilal was particularly displeasing to Ronaldo, who felt as though Al-Hilal were being unfairly strengthened. As a result of this, the 40-year-old decided not to play for Al-Nassr against Al-Riyadh and is doubtful to feature against Al-Ittihad.

Cristiano Ronaldo saw his side bring in only two players, one from the Iraqi league and the other for free, in the whole of the January transfer window. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner tried to prevent Karim Benzema from joining Al-Hilal but failed, and is unsatisfied with the management of his club.