“Completely Different Animal”- Graham Hunter Heaps Praise on $37 Million Real Madrid Superstar Chasing Cristiano Ronaldo’s Unique Record

Wednesday saw Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema moving past club legend and current B team manager Raul in the La Liga goals tally. Now, Benzema has only Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of him as Real Madrid’s all-time top scorer in La Liga and overall. The current Balon d’Or is getting praise for his feat, with Graham Hunter being one of them.

It will be interesting to see whether Benzema goes on to beat Ronaldo’s record or not. He still has a long way to go, but the French forward is leaving his footsteps in the history of the Los Blancos with his goal-scoring. Benzema is in his last year of contract with Real Madrid and is expected to sign a new deal before the season ends. 

Graham Hunter praises Karim Benzema for the Real Madrid record

Hunter, who has been writing columns for ESPN since 2010, has praised the Madrid talisman for becoming the second-top scorer for the club in the league. He surpassed club legend Raul on Wednesday when he scored a brace against Elche from the penalty spot. 

Hunter was on La Liga Live and said, “I genuinely feel like he’s a better footballer. He’s a completely different animal.” It is not the first time Hunter has praised Benzema. Hunter once said Benzema deserves a statue outside the Santiago Bernabeu stadium. He also admires the French forward for his contribution to developing Vinicius Jr under his wings.

Benzema was the fourth signing in 2009 by then-president Florentino Perez. They brought him from French giants Olympique Lyon after signing Cristiano Ronaldo, Ricardo Kaka, and Raul Albiol. For the years, Benzema played second fiddle to Ronaldo and formed one of the lethal trios BBC with the Portuguese and Gareth Bale.

Ronaldo was the one who took goal-scoring responsibility till his transfer to Juventus in 2018. Since the Portuguese left, Benzema has carried the mantle and is the main goal-scorer for the club. He was phenomenal last season, helping the club win La Liga and UEFA Champions League.

The former Lyon forward went on to win Balon d’Or last for the first time in his career last year. Benzema is now chasing Ronaldo for the top-scorer spot, although it will be a next-to-impossible task for the 35-year-old.

Benzema is chasing Cristiano Ronaldo for the top-scorer spot in Real Madrid’s history

Cristiano Ronaldo is the all-time top-scorer for Real Madrid, with whooping 450 strikes in the nine years he spent with Los Blancos. He also is the top-scorer for the club in La Liga with 311 goals. On Wednesday, Benzema came two more goals closer to Ronaldo after scoring a brace against Elche.

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Benzema is not only the second top-scorer for the club overall, but in La Liga as well. He is on 339 overall goals for the club and 230 goals in La Liga. He is 111 goals behind the Portuguese to become Real Madrid’s top scorer in history. Only time will tell whether he closes down Ronaldo or not. 

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What are your predictions? Will Benzema keep playing for Real Madrid and become the all-time top goal-scorer for the club or not?