The writing was on the wall and it did come true on Monday night.
Karim Benzema won the men’s Ballon d’Or for the first time on Monday after a brilliant season with Real Madrid capped by the Champions League and Spanish league titles.
Apart from guiding Real Madrid to the UEFA Champions League crown and the La Liga title, the striker also helped France lift their first-ever UEFA Nations League trophy in October last year
34-year-old Benzema had his best season ever at Madrid, being the top scorer in both leagues. He scored 44 times with Madrid, including 15 in Europe’s top competition, and equalled Raúl González as the club’s second-highest scorer behind Cristiano Ronaldo.
Benzema won ahead of Liverpool’s Sadio Mané and Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne.
Benzema succeeded Lionel Messi, who won the award for a record-extending seventh time last year but was not among the nominees this time after his first season with Paris Saint-Germain.
For the first time this year, the Ballon d’Or was based on achievements from the past season. It had previously been awarded based on performances throughout calendar years.
Spanish player Alexia Putellas won the women’s trophy for the second straight year following another standout season with Barcelona.
Putellas scored 42 goals and delivered 22 assists last season and became the first player to win the award twice.
Also read: El Clasico: Real Madrid beat Barcelona 3-1 to go top of La Liga