Benzema may have missed getting on the scoresheet against Chelsea, but he was still able to reach a couple of UCL milestones
Real Madrid captain Karim Benzema eclipsed a former custodian of the Los Blancos armband, Raul Gonzales, to reach another Uefa Champions League milestone against Chelsea.
Benzema playing his way to legendary status at Real Madrid
The Frenchman who joined Real Madrid in 2009 has been part of an enormously successful period for the club, helping them to five UEFA Champions League titles in his time with Los Blancos.
Benzema has been a goalscoring phenomenon in the UCL, with his 90 goals scored in the competitions so far placing him fourth in the all-time top scorers’ list.
Against Chelsea, Benzema could not find the back of the net as he has so often done in the Champions League, but he was still able to reach a competition milestone by breaking Raul’s record to become the Real Madrid outfield player with the most appearances in the UCL.
Benzema breaks Raul’s Real Madrid record
Benzema’s 131st appearance for Los Blancos in the competition took him past the legendary Raul who made 130 appearances for Real Madrid in 16 years at the club.
Benzema also reached 150 appearances in the UEFA Champions League, making him only the fifth player in the competition’s history to reach the landmark.
He is now just one appearance behind Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez for appearing in the competition and with and could surpass him to become the fourth most-capped player in the UCL when Real Madrid play in the Semifinals.
Meanwhile Real Madrid cruised past Chelsea thanks to some Rodrygo brilliance
Try as they might, Chelsea were unable to avoid another disappointing defeat against Real Madrid in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal, succumbing to a 2-0 defeat on the night and a 4-0 loss on aggregate to exit the competition at the same stage and to the same opposition as they did last season.
19:21 - 18.04.2023
As it happened: Real Madrid vs Chelsea
Rodrygo's double helps Real Madrid complete a 4-0 aggregate win over Chelsea.
In the end, a brace from Brazilian wunderkind Rodrygo Goes was enough to sink the blues further in the tie as Los Blancos claimed a second victory at Stamford Bridge in two years.
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