KARIM BENZEMA rejected a mega-money move to Manchester United in order to join Spanish giants Real Madrid.
Old Trafford chiefs had put together a huge deal and offered his club, Lyon, even more money than they got from Los Blancos in 2009.
Karim Benzema snubbed Manchester United’s bigger offer to fulfil his dream of paying for Spanish giants Real MadridCredit: Getty Images – Getty
But the France striker had set his heart on a move to the Bernabeu.
Jean-Michel Aulas, owner and president of the French club, revealed on broadcaster beIN’s French Ligue 1 show that United had offered more money for the player.
He said: “When Karim was solicited to leave Lyon, we had two offers: Manchester United and Real Madrid.
“Karim, like Nabil Fekir, came to see me, and that’s where there’s relationships that show trust, and told me ‘My dream is to play for Real Madrid’.
“And so he went to Real Madrid for an inferior fee to what we had from Manchester United.”
Benzema, who turns 32 this month, joined Madrid in 2009 for £25million.
He has scored 158 goals in 250 LaLiga starts for the Spaniards, winning four Champions League titles, two LaLigas and two Copa del Reys.
Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge at United when they made their move for the then 21-year-old.
The Manchester club had reached the Champions League final that year, just a year after beating Chelsea to win Europe’s biggest prize.
Ferguson had wanted to pair Benzema with Wayne Rooney in a dream partnership.
But Benzema’s desire to join Real saw Lyon take a loss as Aulas granted the striker his wish.
Benzema, linked with a return to Lyon as player-coach, has been frozen out of the international scene as a result of a falling out with national boss Didier Deschamps.
He scored 27 goals in 81 caps for Les Bleus.
But the son of Algerian parents vowed to explore other countries he could play for following his bitter fall-out with France chiefs.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
