SHADY FRIENDS

‘HE DIDN’T BUY A FANCY PLACE. HE WENT BACK TO THE HOOD. HE NEVER CUT THE CORD’

Those who know him say he has always felt like an outsider because of his immigrant family, who settled in the tough working-class Lyon neighbourhood of Bron.

“He was this kid who lacked a bit of confidence,” says Robert Valette, who coached Benzema for Lyon’s reserve team.

“He could easily go undetected. He’d never put the spotlight on himself. He was never a troublemaker himself – the problem was when he was with his friends. Karim was faithful to his friends. He’s been a victim of this loyalty, but these are the rules of the game when you come from the ghetto.”

Once Benzema hit the big leagues and started making serious money, that loyalty was still in place. His old friends were still there, hanging around,” Valette says. “He didn’t buy a fancy place. He went back to the hood. He never cut the cord.”

However, Frederic Rigolet, who also coached Benzema in his youth, says his background shaped him.

“When he has a problem, people say it’s because he comes from a bad area. But Bron also provided Benzema with the ingredients to fly, the perseverance to stand out and, more important, the ties that bind.

“His whole family is very close,” Rigolet adds. “That’s helped him to become a good player.”