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Wind the clock back to the summer of 2009 and Real Madrid were in the business of spending big money.
Cristiano Ronaldo, World Player of the Year in 2008 was signed from Manchester United for a world record fee of £80 million. They also decided to sign the player who had swept the board of individual honours in 2007 as Kaka was brought from AC Milan for over £50 million.
Also joining that summer, but enjoying nowhere near the same fanfare, was a French striker called Karim Benzema, who had shone for French side Lyon, scoring 66 goals in 148 appearances, winning seven major trophies, including four league titles in a row.
He was widely considered to be one of the best young strikers in world football but his transfer was overshadowed by those two illustrious names.
Fast forward to the present day and Benzema is the last man standing of the illustrious trio. Ronaldo enjoyed a stunning career before moving to Juventus in 2018. Kaka struggled to replicate the form of his early career lasting only four seasons, winning a solitary league title and Spanish Cup.
Despite attracting criticism at various points throughout his career Benzema has continued to thrive and been a key part of a team that won four Champion's League crowns in the last decade.
So where does he stand in the history of the world's most successful team. In this article we take a look.
Goals - 240
At time of writing Benzema has a whopping 240 goals to his name in 500 games. It might not quite be to the standards of Cristiano Ronaldo but it is seriously impressive nonetheless. He is currently sixth on the all time list, just two behind Ferenc Puskas and with a contract running until the summer of 2022 there will be plenty of opportunity to to add to that tally with 300 goals certainly in his sights.
He averages 0.48 goals a game which is better than club great Raul who is currently second on the all time list with 323. His least prolific season was just after joining in 2009-10 when he scored just 9 goals in 33 games and his best return was 32 goals in 2011-12.
What has perhaps been most impressive is the way he has stepped up following the transfer of Ronaldo to Juventus.
In Ronaldo's final two seasons, Benzema only scored 31 goals in 95 games. Since the Portugese superstar left, Benzema has been significantly more prolific, notching 48 goals in 87 appearances.
161 of his goals have come in the league while he has registered 52 in European competition.
Appearances - 500
Benzema's fitness levels during his time at the club have been exemplary. Rarely injured, he has never played less than 33 games in a season and has made 50 or more appearances on four occasions.
These games have been some of the biggest in world football. He has played in four Champion's League finals and been part of four FIFA World Club Cup winning squads.
He is currently just outside the top 10 of Real Madrid's all time list and will need to play another 60 games for the club to break into that list but given his extraordinary fitness levels and consistency he should comfortably make it and will have his eye on playing at least 600 times for the club.
He is approaching 350 games in La Liga and has played over 100 in European competition as Real have dominated in Europe over the last decade.
Way out in front of the all time list is club legend Raul who played 741 times for the club. To break that record Benzema would need to play for Madrid for another five seasons at least which doesn't seem feasible given that he turns 33 in December 2020.
His cause may possibly be helped though by his ongoing exile from the French national team. Despite his incredible form at club level, Benzema hasn't played for his country since 2015.
Whatever happens in the future he remains a vitally important part of manager Zinedine Zidane's current plans and there will be a lot more games for him yet with his manager stating in an interview last season that Benzema was one of the best in the world.
“I know what a player Benzema is, everyone knows it. The number of goals he’s scoring is incredible. Everyone can have their opinion on who is the best number nine in the world and for me it’s Karim. He is confident, he knows you can always improve too, which is great. It doesn’t surprise me what he’s doing.”
Assists - 133
Benzema might not have scored the most goals or made the most appearances but one area where he does stand alone is in assisting goals for his fellow team members. As a central striker his primary focus will always be on scoring goals but in February 2020 he surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo's club record of 131 with a beautifully weighted pass that was finished off by Lucas Vasquez.
It is a remarkable statistic for Benzema, given the nature of his central striking role, to hold and will surely stand the test of time.
Understandably most of his assists have come in La Liga where he is currently seven short of reaching a century. He has 11 in the Copa Del Rey, and 24 in the UEFA Champion's League.
His lowest output for assists was his debut season as he adapted to the demands of a new club when he registered just three assists, all in La Liga.
His best year was in 2013-14 when he claimed 15 assists as Real won the Champions League and Copa Del Rey. On two other occasions he has produced 12 assists while in 2019-20 he seems certain to break into double figures once more as his tally stands at nine already.
Benzema referenced his creative side once describing himself as 'a No. 9 with the soul of a No. 10.'
His managers have also appreciated the role he has played for the good of the team. Santiago Solari said:
"He is generous with his play, makes those around him play better and is generous with his effort, too."
During those 500 games Benzema has played a total of 34,751 minutes, meaning he averages a goal or an assist every 93 minutes which is a seriously impressive contribution and one that has been crucial to the success of his team.
Major Trophies - 17
Ultimately the key thing any player will look back on when they end their career is how many trophies they have won and Benzema has been part of a truly glorious era at Real Madrid.
Things got off to a relatively slow start though. He would win his first trophy under the management of Jose Mourinho when picking up the Copa del Rey in 2010-11. He followed that with his first Spanish title the following season when he would play 52 games and score 32 goals in all competitions. He was then part of the side that won the Spanish Super Cup in 2012.
He would then have to wait a further two seasons before first getting his hands on the trophy that defines Real Madrid more than any other.
By that time Jose Mourinho had been replaced by Carlo Ancelotti and Benzema would score 5 goals in 11 games in Europe as Real beat city rivals Athletico 4-1 after extra time to win their 10th European Cup. He would also win a second Spanish Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup in 2014 before Ancelotti was replaced by Rafa Benitez, who in turn would be replaced by Benzema's fellow Frenchman Zinedine Zidane.
Over the next two and a half years Benzema would be a key part of a side that made history winning three European Cup's in a row. There would be a second league title, two more UEFA Super Cups and three FIFA Club World Cup titles.
This season he has added another Spanish Super Cup crown and is on course for a third La Liga title, with Real back on top of the table after the recent victory over Barcelona in El Clasico.
He currently has 17 major honours to his name with Madrid and few would bet against him adding even more, goals, games and trophies and further cementing his legacy with the world's most successful football club.
