RIYADH — French superstar Karim Benzema's superb goal on Sunday paved the way for Al-Ittihad Club to advance into the quarter-finals of the King Salman Club Cup. Al-Ittihad defeated Tunisia's Sfaxien 1-0 in the second round of the group stage of the Arab Club Champions Cup. Al-Ittihad leads the first group with six points, two ahead of the Iraqi team Al-Shorta, before taking them on in the last round of the group matches on Aug. 2. Sfaxien remained at the bottom of the group with zero points before facing its local rivals, Esperance, who had tied with Al-Shorta earlier. Benzema led the defeat against the Tunisian club by scoring a fantastic goal at the 63rd minute of the second half of the match. The former Real Madrid striker took advantage of his speed before being surrounded by the Tunisian team's defense, to net the ball. Benzema found himself surrounded by three players when he received the ball each time. Al-Ittihad's attempts focused on Abdel-Razzaq Hamdallah, who hit a ball that was sent away by Sfaxien goalkeeper Mohamed Kaaloul in the 31st minute. The veteran French striker was at the right place at the right time - a place he's found himself many times in the box during a match - when a cross was pinged into Sfaxien box and the defense failed to clear the ball. Abderazzak Hamdallah headed the ball back to Benzema, who took a touch, turned, then fired into the far corner to give his team a crucial win. The Ballon d'Or winner Benzema made his debut for Saudi Champions Al-Ittihad in their 2-1 win over Tunisian side Esperance Sportive de Tunis in the first round of the Arab Club Champions Cup on Thursday. Benzema scored a stunning goal before assisting the first goal. Benzema officially signed a contract with Al-Ittihad, the defending champions of the Saudi Pro League, in June on a three-year contract. The club have won the Arab Club Championship once in 2004-05, and will hope to win a second this season. He is among the high-profile soccer stars who have recently joined Saudi Pro Legue clubs, following the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined Al-Nassr Club of Riyadh in January this year. The matches of King Salman's Cup for Arab Clubs 2023 kicked off on Thursday, with the participation of 16 clubs divided into 4 groups. The tournament, which is organized by the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA), is hosted by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation in Taif, Abha and Al-Baha from 27 July until the 12 August.
