Ronaldo is not a selfish player, says Benzema
Madrid June 9 (IANS) France and Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema has said Real Madrid football star Cristiano Ronaldo is not a selfish player.
Ronaldo has been time and again questioned for not passing the ball enough and instead taking a swipe at the goal himself.
But Benzema who along with Ronaldo successfully defended the Champions League crown in a 4-1 final win against Juventus in Cardiff said whenever he hears Ronaldo s name he just has admiration for the Portuguese. Ronaldo scored twice in the final.
I have no words. When I hear his name I just have a gesture of admiration Benzema told a Spanish website AS.
He s an extraordinary person. We understand each other well on the pitch. He wants to have the ball but it s very difficult to get it when he runs with it.
He s not selfish on the pitch but if he has the ball he always wants to go for goal. And suddenly he ll set me up to score he added.
Ronaldo a four-time Ballon d Or winner finished atop the Champions League scoring charts in the campaign having netted 10 times from the quarter-final stage on.
Meanwhile Sergio Asensio expressed his desire to stay at Real after experiencing a superb season at the Bernabeu despite only starting 11 games.
My intention is to stay at Real Madrid and to earn a lot of minutes. My goal is to be a starter at Real Madrid. There were moments when I didn t play but I wanted to make the most of any chances the coach afforded me and I finished up in good form Asensio told reporters here at a press conference on Thursday.
I wasn t used to not playing. Yet I worked hard to make the most of the opportunities I got and I was able to finish the season well. This is something for them and the club. I hope that they both remain as they re great players and have helped me a lot throughout the season.
With the national team I want to nail down my place in the squad and with Real Madrid I will try to get more minutes more important minutes and continue winning titles he added.
--IANS
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