Olivier Giroud may have led the line as France won the 2018 World Cup in Russia but Karim Benzema is in no doubt who is the better striker.
The Real Madrid man has not played for his country since before the Euro 2016 tournament in which Les Bleus made the final, and has thus been unable to add to his 27 goals in 81 appearances for the country.
Giroud has taken advantage of Benzema’s absence and is now France’s third highest scorer, having bagged 39 goals in 93 games. The Chelsea man trails only Thierry Henry and Michel Platini in the scoring charts.
Despite Giroud’s exploits for France, he has struggled for game time in the club game, while Benzema is enjoying one of his most productive seasons in the Spanish capital.
In 26 La Liga games this year, the 32-year-old has been involved in 20 goals, with 14 strikes and six assists. He compared himself to Giroud, who is a year older and has only two goals in nine Premier League appearances in 2019-20.
“You don’t compare Formula 1 with karting, and I am being nice,” Benzema said on Instagram Live .
“Next…I know that I am Formula 1.
“It works because he is there, that is the only reason. It won’t be spectacular, he won’t do something amazing, but he has his thing.
“Aside from that, does everyone like the way he plays? I don’t know.”
Benzema was dropped from the French team after a dispute with Mathieu Valbuena in which he was accused of blackmailing his former teammate.
His strong performances this campaign led to some suggesting he might make his way back into Didier Deschamps plans, especially with Giroud unable to get on the pitch at Stamford Bridge.
The president of the France Football Federation Noel le Graet soon squashed that idea, leading to another social media outburst from the forward, who could also qualify to represent Algeria.
“If you think that I am finished, let me play for a country that I am eligible to play for and we will see,” Benzema said as part of tweet directed at Le Graet.