Karim Benzema proudly showed his Ballon d’Or award to fans at the Santiago Bernabéu and then sat back as Real Madrid beat Sevilla 3-1 and increased its lead of the Spanish league on Saturday.
Benzema was ruled out of the match when the club said he had muscle fatigue. It appears that the striker, who won football’s prestigious individual prize on Monday, is being extra cautious to avoid the risk of any injury that might jeopardize his participation with France at the World Cup in Qatar starting in less than a month.
