Let me tell you first off that Karim Benzema's importance in the Real Madrid set-up is underappreciated. His excellent link-up play often gets the best out of Ronaldo and co and his tricky movement causes opposition defenders plenty of problems.
However, this year, Benzema has really struggled to find his scoring boots. His finishing has been woeful while his usually solid dependable link-up play has also come under increasing scrutiny.
