Karim Benzema was the talk of the town when France announced their squad back in May. The Real Madrid talisman had missed out on international football for 6 years after a scandal which included former French international Mathieu Valbuena.

Benzema had enjoyed two fruitful seasons at Real Madrid following Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure from the Bernabeu which led to his selection. Benzema was also seen as the first-choice striker in Didier Deschamps setup as he displaced familiar foe Olivier Giroud in the line-up.

However, the first two matches for Benzema didn’t go as per the script. He was unable to provide any sort of impact and couldn’t muster a single goal. Benzema is much more than just a goal scorer as he can be used as a creative outlet as well but neither did he score any goal, nor did he provide any assist.

His return to the national side was anything but a fairy-tale as critics started questioning his selection after two quiet games. Olivier Giroud, France’s second all-time top scorer was waiting in the wings but Didier Deschamps was confident in his man and showed faith in him as he named Benzema in his starting 11 for their final group game against Portugal in Budapest.

The striker ended up having a massive impact on the match as it turned out. He scored France’s first goal in the stoppage time of the first half to draw level with Portugal. It was penalty but it helped France get into a fairly difficult match and it also helped Benzema break his Euro jinx as that was his first ever goal at the finals of the European Championship.

Just a few minutes into the second half, Benzema made a smart run and took Paul Pogba’s brilliant pass into his stride before slotting it home. After a few VAR checks, the goal was awarded and no one was happier than Benzema.

As it panned out, France only took 1 point from the match but it was an important contribution from Benzema as France topped the group and face a relatively easier opponent in Switzerland.