Published 16:17 IST, December 17th 2019
El Clasico: Karim Benzema vs Luis Suarez, the battle of the No. 9s
The two strikers - Benzema and Suarez - have many years left to their name. They will face each other on December 19, 2019 for the next 'El Clasico'. Read more.
- SportFit
- 4 min read
Real Madrid vs Barcelona, Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi, BBC vs MSN - these things define the biggest rivalry of the decade in the European football world. On one side, we have Real Madrid - the biggest club in Europe. On the other side, we have Barcelona - the most successful side in Spain in recent years.
One rivalry which is going on for many years is between the No. 9's of both sides. Real Madrid's Karim Benzema and Barcelona's Luis Suarez have been a part of their teams for many years now. Suarez joined the Catalans in 2014 after traumatizing opponents in the Premier League. As for Benzema, he spent five years in Lyon before joining the Los Blancos in 2009.
While one is known for his antics on the pitch, the other is known for his selflessness. While one has been the flagbearer, the other has been the push every side needs. Let's put together some stats to see who is the better one between the duo.
Karim Benzema vs Luis Suarez: Who is better?
Both the players lead from the front. The most important thing when we compare the strikers is the number of goals they have scored for their side. Benzema has a total of 160 goals in 327 appearances he has made for Real Madrid. Luis Suarez has found the net a total of 140 times in 177 games for Barcelona. So it's clear that Suarez is better when it comes to just goals. Suarez is only 20 goals behind Benzema and has played 150 games lesser than him in Spain. The Uruguayan is a goal machine and his contribution in terms of goals has been tremendous. However, there is more to this game than scoring goals and the quality of a player can not just be judged by just looking at their goal-tally.
Have you seen anything so beautiful?
Andres Iniesta (who is a midfielder) has scored lesser goals than Sergio Ramos (who is a defender). And no one can question Iniesta's credibility by seeing such stats, can they? Karim Benzema, while being a striker, played a major part of his career as a false No. 9. The Frenchman was often seen getting in the middle of the game instead of waiting inside the box like many strikers. Cristiano Ronaldo was meant to score the goals while Benzema was there to produce the chances. It was only when CR7 left for Juventus that Benzema came to the forefront.
Poetry in motion ft. Benzema
Luis Suarez (32) and Karim Benzema (31) are ageing like fine wine and are still the first choice players for their respective teams. However, in final analysis, we'll say that Suarez's stats clearly make him the better striker of the duo. That said, any team will like to have a proper team player like Karim Benzema in their side. The two strikers still have many years left to their name and will face each other on December 19, 2019, for the next 'El Clasico'.
Updated 20:28 IST, December 17th 2019