Karim Benzema talks Real Madrid, Vinicius, Ballon d’Or and future return – ‘It’s possible’ | OneFootball

There are not many better goal scorers who have played for Real Madrid than Karim Benzema, and it comes as no surprise that Los Blancos struggled deeply to find a replacement for the Frenchman when he left the club.

Kylian Mbappe, eventually, has taken over that role for the men in white and Benzema recently opened up on his thoughts on the World Cup winner’s adaptation at Real Madrid so far.

Now, in an interview with AS, Benzema spoke in detail about Vinicius Jr. and even shockingly admitted that he did not rule out a return to Real Madrid.

Benzema speaks about a return to the club

The former player first spoke about how he was always in the loop of Real Madrid’s games and progress and how he felt a special connection with the club.

“Real Madrid will always be MY team. I still watch all matches.”

“It’s the best club in the world, it always has been and will always be,” he added.

He then praised Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid and the current crop of players at the club.

“I really like this Real Madrid team. It’s a team with a lot of potential that I think can do more than what they’re doing now.”

Elaborating on the noise around Real Madrid’s two defeats of the season instead of there being praise around the solid start, he said,

“There’s a lot of talk on them, but it’s always been like this. If they draw or lose, it’s a crisis.

“They go from being the best team in the world to questioning the coach, this player or that player.”

“It’s normal because they’re the best team in the world,” he added.

On future return and Vinicius

When asked if a return to Real Madrid was possible, the player surprisingly did not rule it out.

“Real Madrid return? If Florentino is still there, it could HAPPEN. I talk to him and it’s POSSIBLE.”

“I’m a Madridista. I feel it in my soul. Madrid is still my city. We’ll see what happens,” he added.

The former Real Madrid superstar then spoke about Vinicius Jr and what he knew of the Brazilian’s personality and quality.

Benzema has defended Vinicius Jr. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

“Vini Jr? He’s a very good kid, with a big heart, who wants to learn, he’s phenomenal. That’s how it is.”

“People put a lot of pressure on him, A LOT. There are players who cannot be put under this much pressure.

“He’s still young, but he’s already played a lot of games for Real Madrid,” he added.

Speaking on the impact the winger has had at the club already over the years, Benzema defended Vinicius saying,

“You can’t forget what he’s done. You can’t say he’s bad now. It’s not fair. He’s very good, but he can do more.”

A lot has been said about the Brazilian’s overt display of frustration when taken off the field, and Benzema admitted that was an area the winger must improve on.

“That’s his character. He gets angry when he leaves the pitch. That’s normal. Okay, he shouldn’t do that.”

“People need to know that’s how he is. He makes gestures on and off the pitch. It’s nothing,” he added.

On how he understood the gestures to some point and what they actually signal, the club legend said,

“He was doing well on the pitch, he thought he could do things, have more touches, and he got substituted. He made gestures because he didn’t want to leave the pitch. It’s normal. It’s nothing.”

Finally, Benzema was asked if Vinicius Jr can win the Ballon d’Or like he did, to which he honestly said,

“Vini Jr. winning the Ballon d’Or? I think he might win it someday. He can do it. It’s difficult, but he can.”

“It’ll happen the day he understands that he’s on the pitch solely to play & leaves everything else behind,” he added.

Giving the player some important advice towards the end of his interview, Benzema said,

“He has the quality and he’s in the best place to do it, Real Madrid. No better place.”