Zidane can't believe it: a Real Madrid player who could end up in jail

The forward Karim Benzema will face trial for his alleged involvement in a scheme to blackmail his former teammate Mathieu Valbuena in 2015. The case is about a sex video in which Valbuena appears. Benzema is accused of pressing Valbuena, who played alongside with the Real Madrid forward and on the French national team, to pay the blackmailers and thus prevent the video from being made public.

Four other men, who were not named, were said to have also been implicated, according to information the prosecutor told CNN. Benzema denied these accusations, in addition to being suspended by the French team. The Real Madrid striker is said to face up five years in prison if he is found guilty.

In 2015, when the newspaper Le Monde asked Valbuena if he held Benzema responsible, he said that he was very disappointed in his former partner. Benzema has scored 27 goals in 81 appearances with the French national team but has not represented his country since the Valbuena incident.

Benzema has scored more than 250 goals for Real Madrid and has won four European Cups and three La Liga titles with the Spanish club. Valbuena currently plays for Olympiacos, the Greek champion, whom he joined in 2019. During his career he has also played in Marseille, Lyon in France and Fenerbache in Turkey, he has also not represented the French team since the incident with Benzema.