The striker still involves himself in build-up play – he has averaged 39 passes per 90 minutes in the league and Champions League since football resumed last June, which places him in the top 3% of forwards in Europe for such figures.
Since the start of the 2018-19 season, he has overperformed his La Liga expected goals tally by 5.63 goals – in short, he has scored six more goals than would be expected from the chances presented to him).
Benzema demonstrated this in the 3-0 friendly win over Wales on 2 June.
His equaliser against the run of play, as Real drew 1-1 in their Champions League semi-final first leg against Chelsea on 27 April, epitomised the level of finishing quality he can add to this France side.
Benzema’s instant adaptation may be explained by his previous experience for Real Madrid in a similar 4-4-2 diamond system during their second and third successive Champions League victories under Zidane.