Karim Benzema admitted that he was very confident in taking the Panenka penalty when Real Madrid played Manchester City in the first leg of the Champions League semifinal at the Etihad Stadium, Tuesday (26/4).
After two missed penalties against Osasuna in La Liga last weekend, Benzema was again trusted by Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti to take the penalty against Man City.
Benzema confidently opted for a penalty with Panenka’s shot which then outwit Man City goalkeeper Ederson Moraes.
Benzema admits that he is already preparing to execute the Panenka penalty if he gets another chance against Manchester City. The French international bomber had practiced his Panenka penalty before traveling to the Etihad Stadium.
“I always have that in my mind, if you never take a penalty, you never miss a penalty. It’s about mental confidence,” Benzema said.
“I was very confident, so I did the Panenka, and everything went well,” said the 34-year-old striker as quoted by Sky Sports.
Ancelotti also said Benzema had already prepared for the Panenka penalty before the match against Man City. The Italian coach praised Benzema’s mentality for risking a Panenka penalty after missing twice against Osasuna.
“I think Benzema changed because the last two penalties were not good. He tried it in training, I don’t know how he will shoot. He chose Panenka and did well, showed a strong mentality of character. It’s not easy to shoot like that in the Champions League semi-finals, said Ancelotti.
Benzema’s penalty in the 82nd minute made Madrid reduce the position 3-4 against Man City. The penalty makes Los Blancos have a pretty good chance when they host The Citizens in the second leg of the Champions League semifinal next week.
These two goals were enough for Benzema to beat Robert Lewandowski (13 goals) from the top scorer in the Champions League this season. Benzema now has 14 goals.
Quoted from the Champions League Twitter tweet, the 14 goals made Benzema equal to Lionel Messi’s goal record as the top scorer of the Champions League in the 2011/2012 season.
Not only that, Benzema is also close to the goal record of his former Real Madrid partner Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo was listed as the top scorer in the Champions League in the 2017/2018 season with 15 goals.
In the 2019/2020 season, Robert Lewandowski was also the top scorer in the Champions League with 15 goals. By having the second leg of the semifinals this season, especially if he can get to the final, Benzema also has the opportunity to surpass Ronaldo’s other goal records.
CR7 became the top scorer in the 2015/2016 Champions League with 16 goals, but in the 2013/2014 season the Portugal national team captain became the top scorer in the Champions League with 17 goals.
