"The best striker in the world" - Real Madrid superstar talks up Karim Benzema's 2022 Ballon d'Or hopes

Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro has claimed that striker Karim Benzema will win the 2022 Ballon d'Or. He also recognized the goalscoring abilities of the Frenchman and claimed that he is currently "the best striker in the world."

Benzema, 34, helped Los Blancos win another title as he scored in their 2-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Super Cup on August 10. The Frenchman scored the second goal from a first-time finish after being assisted by Vinicius Jr.

The striker had a brilliant 2021-22 campaign as he helped Real Madrid win three trophies - Supercopa de Espana, La Liga, and the Champions League. He scored 44 goals and provided 15 assists in just 46 matches across all competitions.

Hence, Casemiro believes that Benzema is certain to win the Ballon d'Or this year. He said after their Super Cup win (via Madrid Zone):

“Benzema’s clearly going to win the Ballon D’Or.”

The Brazilian midfielder added:

“Before we didn't pay much attention to Karim because we had a guy who scored a lot of goals, but now he's the best striker in the world.”

With his goal against Eintracht Frankfurt, Benzema overtook Raul to become the independent second-highest goalscorer for Los Blancos with 324 goals. Only Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals (450) than the Frenchman for the Spanish club.

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Real Madrid beat Eintracht Frankfurt to lift their fifth UEFA Super Cup trophy

While the Champions League winners were favorites for the Super Cup, the Europa League winners did give them some competition in the match.

Frankfurt created some chances throughout the match and drew out three saves from Thibaut Courtois. However, they were unable to really threaten the experienced Madrid defense.

Real Madrid themselves created a few chances in the first half as Vinicius Jr.'s shot was cleared off the goal line by defender Tuta.

David Alaba then gave Los Blancos the lead in the 37th minute as Casemiro's header found him in front of an open goal.

The second half again saw Real Madrid create some chances before eventually breaking Frankfurt down.

Vinicius Jr. made his typical run on the left flank and drove towards the goal. He then passed the ball to Benzema on the edge of the penalty box. The Frenchman blasted a first-time shot past Kevin Trapp, who should've done better to stop it.

The 14-time Champions League winners then managed the game well to secure their first silverware of the season and fourth of the calendar year.