More problems for Marcelo Gallardo in Saudi Arabia: where is Karim Benzema?

The front Karim Benzema doesn’t seem to be having his best moment at Al-Ittihad. After being absent from training on Thursday and Friday and having closed his social networks, he “disappeared” a few hours before the match that the team Marcelo Gallardo he was supposed to play against Al-Tai, which was eventually postponed.

The Muñeco team accumulates three consecutive defeats: was eliminated from the Club World Cup by the Egyptian team Al-Ahly (3-1), losing against Al Raed (3-1) and against Al Nassr (5-2).

“He wastes very easy opportunities and seems to have lost the desire to play football”said Saudi journalist Abdel Karim Al-Jasser before Benzema’s disappearance became known. According to Saudi media Al-Riyadiya, the Frenchman left Jeddah unexpectedly, but the reasons for his departure are unknown. Apparently, the combination of the bad sporting moment and the criticism he received would have affected his mood.

Meanwhile, Gallardo, when asked, decided not to provide explanations on the case, which has generated several rumors among Al-Ittihad followers. So far Benzema remains missing and his future is uncertain.

Benzema, 36, joined Al Ittihad six months ago from Real Madrid as a free agent. The French striker has signed a contract for three seasons, until 2026. He has reportedly accepted his signature for 100 million euros for each of the three seasons at the Arab club.

Furthermore, Benzema was one of the promoters of Saudi Arabia’s bid for the 2030 World Cup, for which he would receive a bonus of another 20 million, as reported by Mundo Deportivo.

Gallardo’s team had to postpone a match

The scheduled match against Al-Tai in the Saudi Super League has been postponed. The match, originally scheduled for Saturday, was moved to February 7 due to problems with the flight of Muñeco’s team, which was unable to land at Ha’il airport due to bad weather conditions.