Karim Benzema has sent records tumbling as he put Chelsea to the sword with a hat trick in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final at Stamford Bridge.
The Frenchman came into the game off the back of a hat-trick against Paris Saint Germain in the second leg of their last 16 tie, and quickly added to his tally with a splendid header from 14 yards, before finding another brilliant aerial effort to double his tally and his side’s lead.
And, a minute into the second half, free-scoring Benzema was handed his third goal on a plate, with Edouard Mendy making an awful mistake allowing the Real Madrid forward to roll the ball into an empty net from 25 yards out.
In doing so, he became only the second ever player to have scored hat-tricks in consecutive knockout games of the Champions League, former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo the only other man to have produced the feat.
Only two players in Champions League history have scored a hat-trick in consecutive knockout games:
Cristiano Ronaldo
? vs Bayern
? vs Atlético MadridKarim Benzema
? vs PSG
? vs ChelseaIt’s a Real Madrid thing. #UCL pic.twitter.com/eL3KKAm7My
— William Hill (@WilliamHill) April 6, 2022
France record tumbles
It was not just that record that tumbled, either, with Benzema becoming the first Frenchman to hit double figures in a Champions League season, overtaking the eight goals netted by Wissam Ben Yedder and Kylian Mbappe previously.
Another record broken by Karim Benzema in the Champions League?
What a player.#UCL pic.twitter.com/vEIaOYVIUX
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) April 6, 2022
Additionally, he became the first player to ever score a Champions League hat trick against the Blues since the competition began.
Karim Benzema is the first player in Champions League history to score a #UCL hat-trick against Chelsea. ? pic.twitter.com/bS4ygSGPgL
— Squawka (@Squawka) April 6, 2022
Continuing to improve with age, it seems impossible that the 34 year old does not add to his tally in the remainder of the Champions League campaign, and should he continue scoring Los Blancos have a great chance of going all the way.
