Karim Benzema making Al-Ittihad ‘furious’ over late report back to club. Arsenal are said to be alert over the player’s situation as player agreed to cut his salary to join Arsenal for 1 year loan with an additional year extension- Thiery Henry already gave his countryman Arsenal approval

Thierry Henry has already given Karim Benzema Arsenal transfer approval

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has previously given his verdict on Karim Benzema, who has been linked with leaving Al-Ittihad during the January transfer window

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has already given his seal of approval to a potential move for Karim Benzema. The Gunners have been linked with the 36-year-old during the January transfer window, who joined Al-Ittihad in the summer after leaving Real Madrid.

During his 14-year stay with Los Blancos, Benzema established himself as one of the leading strikers in world football, scoring 354 goals in 648 games, and winning a litany of major honours, including five Champions League titles.

The expiry of his contract in Madrid led Benzema to join the growing list of star names heading to the Saudi Pro League but there have been reports that the 36-year-old is facing issues at his new club.

This speculation led to suggestions that Arsenal could make a move for the prolific forward, amid their struggles in front of goal that has seen Mikel Arteta’s side lose ground in the title race. One of the iconic strikers of his era, Benzema previously received effusive praise from Arsenal’s all-time goal scorer Thierry Henry, who described him as a “complete player”.

“The way he links up the play, the way he makes his team tick, he scores goals and he puts pressure [on the opposition]. He’ll create something out of nothing…it is contagious,” Henry told CBS Sports, following Real Madrid knocking Chelsea out of the Champions League in 2022.

“He plays in space. His teammates always try to find him, every single time. In terms of Karim, he will come into midfield and make his team tick.”

Henry lauded Benzema’s use of movement after scoring an extra-time header in the decisive quarter-final tie at Stamford Bridge. The France international had scored a hat-trick in the previous leg and Henry explained that it was Benzema’s awareness of space that placed him among the very best strikers in the world.

“He plays the ball to Vinicius Junior and look at how he runs,” Henry said in his analysis. “Instead of running [in a straight line], if you think about it he would have closed the angle to the goal. He runs diagonally so he still has the angle of the goal and his shoulders are exactly where they should be.

“If he didn’t run the way he ran, he would have never been able to do what he did. The power is in the cross, he just directs it. Everything was perfect. His movement meant he didn’t kill his angle.”

Despite Henry’s analysis being almost two years old, it is logical to think that Benzema could still notably improve the Gunners, given that he scored 31 goals for Real Madrid last season. Arsenal’s current top scorer is Bukayo Saka, with nine goals in all competitions, while strikers Gabriel Jesus (7) and Eddie Nketiah (6) are not too far behind.