A day after the oil-rich nation failed to reel in Lionel Messi, former Real Madrid number 9 Karim Benzema was revealed as an Al-Ittihad player in front of tens of thousands of fans in Saudi Arabia on Thursday.
Fireworks and flamethrowers welcomed Benzema, who was dressed in Al-Ittihad’s black and yellow kit with the number 9, at the 60,000-seater stadium in Jeddah, where the big ‘KB9’ was emblazoned in bright lights on the pitch.
As per a source close to the negotiations, Benzema joins Cristiano Ronaldo as the latest superstar to sign with the Saudi Pro League, which has a hit list of famous targets.
Benzema, who won 5 Champions Leagues, 4 La Liga titles and 3 Copas del Rey with Real Madrid, expressed his desire to win more silverware with the Saudi champions.
“I’m hungry, I want to play and show what I can still do on the pitch, and especially to put the club where it should be, which is right at the top,” he told a brief press conference.
Ronaldo, 37, joined Riyadh club Al-Nassr in January in a two-and-a-half-year deal for more than 400 million euros. Benzema’s contract has not been disclosed.
