MX23RW : Wednesday, December 25 16:13:17| >> :120:64407:64407:

Rio Ferdinand: 'Karim Benzema better than Luis Suarez'

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand claims that Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema is a tougher opponent than Barcelona's Luis Suarez.

Former Manchester United centre-back Rio Ferdinand has claimed that he found it 'more difficult' to play against Karim Benzema than Luis Suarez during his playing career.

Benzema lifted the Champions League title with Real Madrid on Saturday night and ended the campaign with 28 goals in 36 appearances for the capital giants.

Barcelona forward Suarez, however, hit 59 goals in 53 appearances as Luis Enrique's side won a La Liga and Copa del Rey double.

Ferdinand took on both during his playing career, and has revealed that he found it harder to mark Benzema due to the Frenchman's movement in the final third.

"From personal experience playing against both of those players, I found it harder to play against [Benzema]," Ferdinand told BT Sport. "Because he was very cute, he was very efficient in all areas, off his right and left foot, his movement was cute.

"And sometimes you don't see it glaringly, but he does cute little things that take you out of position that other players can exploit. And when he gets the ball he's got a quick trigger. Suarez is equally as difficult but I just found [Benzema] a little bit more."

Ferdinand is currently being strongly linked with a return to Man United as a coach under new manager Jose Mourinho.

ID:273787: cacheID:273787:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2738:
Written by
Matt Law
Restore Data
Share this article now:
John Stones sees something he likes during the Premier League game between Leicester City and Everton on May 7, 2016
Read Next:
Report: Barcelona to make John Stones bid
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Atletico MadridAtletico18125133122141
2Real Madrid18124241182340
3Barcelona19122551222938
4Athletic Bilbao19106329171236
5Villarreal188643430430
6Mallorca199371921-230
7Real Sociedad187471613325
8GironaGirona187472625125
9Real BetisBetis186752122-125
10Osasuna186752327-425
11Celta Vigo187382728-124
12Rayo Vallecano185762021-122
13Las PalmasLas Palmas186482327-422
14Sevilla186482027-722
15Leganes184681728-1118
16AlavesAlaves184592130-917
17Getafe183781115-416
18Espanyol1843111630-1415
19Valencia172691626-1012
20Real ValladolidValladolid1833121237-2512


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!