Sad That Karim Benzema Left, Thibaut Courtois: He Has The Right To Determine His Future

Karim Benzema (left) decided to leave Real Madrid. (Photo: Twitter/@realmadrid)

Karim Benzema officially ended his career at Real Madrid. He decided to leave after 14 years of serving for Los Blancos.

The match against Athletic Bilbao at the Santiago Bernabeu, Sunday, June 4, became a farewell for Benzema. Unfortunately, the match ended with a score of 1-1.

All elements of the team were saddened by the skipper's departure. Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was among them.

"We have to be very grateful to Karim Benzema, for his career and the trophies that have been won with the club," Courtois said as quoted by the club's official website via Antara, Monday, June 5.

Signed from Lyon in 2009, Benzema became the player who presented the most trophies to Real Madrid with a total of 25 trophies.

Benzema's 25 trophies for Real Madrid include five Champions League, five Club World Cups, four European Super Cups, four La Liga, three Spanish King Cups and four Spanish Super Cups.

"It's great to play with Benzema. He's a very kind player and a club legend. It's a shame he left, but we understand. He has the right to determine his future. I hope this goes well for him and his family," said Courtois.

In addition, Benzema also became the second-placed scorer in the club's history by scoring 354 goals, only losing to Cristiano Ronaldo who scored 450 goals for Real Madrid.

Benzema is fifth as a player who appears with Real Madrid with a record of 648 appearances. Then the French player became the top scorer of the club's history with a total of 165 assists.

On June 6, Real Madrid will hold a tribute ceremony shown to Benzema who is one of the club's legends at Real Madrid Sport City, Madrid.

The player who won the 2022 Ballon D'or title is certain to be one step away from playing in the Arab League following former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo who moved to Arabia in the transfer market last January.