Thanks to the continued brilliance of star striker Karim Benzema, Real Madrid got off to a strong start to the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals with a 2-0 win over Chelsea in the first leg.

Sunday evening saw Karim Benzema say understated goodbyes to Real Madrid in a way that avoided all the usual fanfare when legendary figures leave their clubs close to the end of their careers.

Karim Benzema had just helped Al Ittihad reach the semi-finals of the Saudi Arabian King’s Cup with two goals and a successful penalty in a shootout win against Al Hilal when thoughts turned to ...