Luka Modric knew, but then so did everyone else. It was a sunny Sunday afternoon and Real Madrid had just defeated Barcelona in another clásico – Rodrygo had scored, Fede Valverde had scored and Karim Benzema had scored of course – and the Croat was standing at the side of the pitch, where his teammates were celebrating their return to the top of the table. “We all know what’s going to happen and we all want it to happen and we’re very happy for Karim,” he said. “We hope that tomorrow he will win the Ballon d’Or.”
Modric, the winner in 2018, wasn’t there when Benzema boarded a plane at Barajas airport just after 3.30pm the following day, but Benzema was joined by Thibaut Courtois. The club’s president, Florentino Pérez, travelled with them. Luís Figo and Ronaldo Nazário were on board, too. They have three Ballon d’Ors between them. By the time they made the return journey, there was a fourth. Five of the past eight have made the same journey. Benzema is the first Frenchman to win it since Zinedine Zidane 24 years ago and the eighth Real Madrid player.
