Karim Benzema's greatest goal? Real Madrid star's unique finish for Lyon in 2007

Karim Benzema is the latest winner of the Ballon d’Or.

It truly is a huge compliment to how amazing Benzema was over the course of the 2021/22 season that he became just the second player other than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to claim the prize since 2007.

Truth be told, Benzema has always been there or thereabouts when it comes to the finest male players in the world, but last season gave him the opportunity to truly stand out as the one to rule them all.

Stepping out from the decade-long shadow cast by Ronaldo and Messi's dominance, the Real Madrid hero was playing football from another planet as he secured Champions League and La Liga glory.

Not only did the Frenchman win his first Pichichi Trophy for Los Blancos, but his big game influence en route to Real's 14th European Cup was simply unrivalled.

Stunning hat-tricks against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea as well as three goals over two legs with Manchester City helped Benzema to wrap up one of the least controversial Ballon d'Or wins of the 21st century.

And with Benzema rightfully settling onto his throne at the peak of the beautiful game, we can't help casting our minds back to the moments that showed he was always destined for greatness.

Sure, you never knew quite how long Ronaldo and Messi would make it impossible for anyone else to win the Ballon d'Or specifically, but the writing was always on the wall when it came to Benzema achieving world-class status regardless of specific accolades.

And there's one goal in particular that features in pretty much every compilation of Benzema worth its salt that just kept coming to mind when we looked back across his illustrious career.

Before the bright lights of the Bernabeu and all those Champions League