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In a recent interview with AFP, Karim Benzema's lawyer revealed that the Real Madrid star has dropped his appeal against a sentence passed against him in relation to Mathieu Valbuena's sex-tape scandal.
The Ballon d'Or favourite was caught in the middle of a massive scandal last year and received a fine and a sentence over an extortion attempt in 2015. The French forward is a controversial figure in his national team and has been the subject of a number of scandals in the past.
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The Real Madrid striker suffered the wrath of the French judiciary in November last year after a Versailles criminal court assessed his involvement in an extortion case involving Valbuena. According to the court's statement, the 34-year-old forward had engaged in 'subterfuge and lies' to convince his teammate to submit to a blackmail attempt.
The Los Blancos star's lawyer, Hugues Vigier, has remained steadfast in his belief in his client's innocence, however, and has claimed that the appeal has been dropped because the process involved is "exhausting."
"This withdrawal [of the appeal] endorses a ruling of condemnation and apparently of guilt. It is a judicial truth. But it is not reality."
Real Madrid star Karim Benzema's stellar year set to be stained by court sentence
Karim Benzema has enjoyed a spectacular season on the football field and is the frontrunner for the Ballon d'Or this year. The Frenchman has never won the prestigious award but has finally made his mark as one of the world's best players after a series of match-winning performances.
Real Madrid have won the UEFA Champions League and La Liga this season, with their French striker carrying a massive share of the goalscoring burden. Benzema has also been in Didier Deschamps' plans and has consistently stepped up for France, winning the UEFA Nations League last year.
The Real Madrid star's time with Les Bleus has witnessed its share of tribulations, however, with a shocking extortion scandal effectively sending him into exile on the international stage for nearly six years.
The recent sentence against the La Liga winner by the Versailles criminal court includes a fine of €75,000. The striker was one of five people who reportedly engaged in an unsuccessful attempt to blackmail Mathieu Valbuena.
Benzema made his return to the French squad ahead of the Euros in 2021 and was one of the best players in the competition. The striker has since seen his fortunes skyrocket for both club and country and has become Real Madrid's talisman under Carlo Ancelotti.
