Benzema named UEFA Player of the Year

ISTANBUL  — Karim Benzema and Alexia Putellas were rewarded for outstanding seasons by winning the UEFA men’s and women’s player of the year prizes at a ceremony in Istanbul.

France striker Benzema captained Real Madrid to victory over Liverpool in the Champions League final and scored 15 goals in the competition, while Putellas was the top scorer in the Women’s Champions League, helping Barcelona reach the final which they lost to Lyon.

Benzema took the men’s honours ahead of club team-mate Thibaut Courtois and Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, succeeding Chelsea midfielder Jorginho who won the award last year.

The 34-year-old scored hat-tricks against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea in the Champions League knockout rounds and netted three times across the two legs of the semi-final against Manchester City.

He struck 44 times in 46 games altogether as Real also won the Spanish title.

Carlo Ancelotti was named best men’s coach for his success with Real, with Dutchwoman Sarina Wiegman crowned best women’s coach after leading England to Euro glory on home soil last month.

Putellas, 28, claimed the prize for a second straight year despite suffering a serious knee injury that ruled her out of Euro 2022.

She finished ahead of England forward and European champion Beth Mead, the joint leading scorer at the tournament, and young Germany midfielder Lena Oberdorf.

He scored a stunning hat-trick in 17 second-half minutes in the spectacular last-16 comeback win over Paris Saint-Germain, and another away to Chelsea in the quarterfinal first leg.

It was also his extra-time goal in the return leg of that tie that nipped a Chelsea comeback in the bud, and he then scored three more goals over both legs of the semifinal against Manchester City, including an extra-time spot-kick in the return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu which secured Real’s spot in the final.

“Football is difficult, there are moments when you are dominated and have to hang in there. At Madrid we never give up,” said Benzema.

He was not the standout player in the final itself, with Vinicius Junior scoring the only goal of the game and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in inspired form at the other end.

Courtois was also nominated for the UEFA prize, along with Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne, but there was little question of anyone other than Benzema being crowned.

“What is most important to me is to win collective trophies. If you do things well on the field, individual awards will follow,” said Benzema.

This season has already started with Benzema — who was a prodigious young talent at hometown team Lyon before moving to Real aged 21 in 2009 — scoring as Real beat Eintracht Frankfurt to win the UEFA Super Cup in Helsinki.

The Ballon d’Or should be next, and then Benzema will set his sights on the World Cup, a trophy he missed out on winning with France in 2018 during his long international exile.