Real Madrid

Benzema stuck in a goalscoring crisis

LaLiga - Real MadridDue to his poor form in front of goal

Real Madrid are in full swing following their victory over Paris Saint-Germain but Zinedine Zidane still has one pending issue: Karim Benzema.

Despite the unconditional support of his coach, the French striker is suffering the most on a personal level this season.

His failure to score goals has resulted in Los Blancos' fans losing credit in the Frenchman, as it has become obvious to the club that they must sign a new striker for next season.

Apart from his good performance against PSG, his form in front of goal over the past year has pushed him into a major crisis.

Benzema has never been a pure goalscorer but his numbers are still more than remarkable, as he is the seventh top scorer in the history of the Spanish club.

However, this season his scoring has plummeted, with only six goals in 26 games.

In total, Benzema's bad spell has lasted for 13 months.

In this last year, he has played 54 matches and has only scored 15 goals, and in 41 of those 54 he failed to find the back of the net.

Despite everything, Zidane continues to defend him, both in public and in private.

The forward has only been a substitute in three games this season: two in LaLiga and one in the Copa del Rey, and they have all been to give the player some rest rather than a technical decision.

"Karim, like everyone else, can do more, but I am happy with him," Zidane confessed in a press conference. "I see more than just the goals he scores.

"Of course we want him to do is score goals, but he does very important things for the team."

The squad supports him...

Like their coach, the Real Madrid squad also stand by Benzema, hoping to help him during this hard moment of his career.

Cristiano Ronaldo is delighted to have him as an attacking partner and other players like Sergio Ramos don't hesitate to publicly support him.

During Zidane's reign as head coach, Benzema scored 37 times in the 93 matches that the coach has counted on him, an average of 0.39 goals per game.

In the Zidane era, for example, Ronaldo adds 93 goals in 99 games, while Gareth Bale, the other member of BBC, has 29 in 64 at an average of 0.45 goals per match.

... And so does Morientes

If anyone can understand what Benzema is going through, it is former Real Madrid forward Fernando Morientes.

Morientes, who wore the No. 9 for six seasons with Los Blancos, explains the Frenchman's current situation.

"I've lived it and it's very frustrating," he said to Cadena Cope.

"The matches go by, the team score goals and you don't - and that's your mission. I've lived it as a No. 9 and when you don't score it's very frustrating.

"I got frustrated when I didn't score because I knew the criticism that would come from it."

The former Madrid man expects Benzema to hit the back of the net soon to regain his spirit and find his goalscoring form once again.

"The goal at the end is to encourage the player and at this time it is Benzema," added Morientes.