At 35, Karim Benzema leaves to find in this country his former partner of Real Madrid Cristiano Ronaldo. Benzema signed for three seasons at Al-Ittihad.
The arrival of the former Lyonnais, for an amount still undisclosed but staggering, is part of the great Saudi offensive targeting the stars of European football. The kingdom of the Arabian Peninsula, criticized for human rights abuses, is determined to use football to improve its international image, and it has petrodollars galore to satisfy its ambitions.