The Arab country's state broadcaster Al Ekhbariya reported that Al Ittihad have reached an agreement with Benzema on a 2-year contract, with the club's top brass already in Madrid to seal a "record deal" for the striker.

The 35-year-old Frenchman looked set to stay at the Spanish club for another year after an injury-plagued season (2022-23) saw him miss France's World Cup squad in Qatar due to another injury.

But a very tempting offer from Saudi Arabia, which is estimated to bring him more than 100 million euros a year, made him reconsider decisions about his future. KB9 decided to cancel the one-year extension clause in his contract, with Real underlining that the footballer "has earned the right to decide on his future".

Real also agrees

"Real Madrid and our captain, Karim Benzema, have agreed to complete his brilliant and unforgettable time as a footballer at our club," the Spanish club's management said in a statement.

"Karim Benzema's career at Real Madrid has been a shining example of behavior and professionalism and has represented the values of our club."

Benzema could follow former Real team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo to the Gulf country after the Portuguese forward signed a 2.5-year deal with Al Nasr last December, which is estimated to be worth more than 200 million euros a year.

A career full of titles. 25 trophies

Having joined Real in 2009 from Olympique Lyonnais (for a fee of €35m), Benzema has become the spearhead of the club's attack and main scoring threat since Ronaldo left for Juventus in 2018.

Benzema scored more than 350 goals for the "Queen" and is their second all-time top scorer behind Cristiano Ronaldo. He had his best season in 2021-22 when he scored 44 times in all competitions to lead his side to their 14th European title as well as the LaLiga crown.

In the Champions League, Real made remarkable comebacks from first-leg defeats in the round of 16, in the quarter-finals and semi-finals against Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Manchester City respectively, with Benzema scoring in every other game.

His pivotal role earned him the Ballon d'Or crown, making him the first French footballer to win the biggest and most popular trophy since Zinedine Zidane (1998) and France's 5th overall.

The KB9 ends his career in the Spanish capital with a record 25 trophies with the club, including five European Cups, four LaLiga titles and three Spanish Cups. Now the president of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez is sure to try to fill the void of Karim as quickly as possible...