Just days before the famous El Classico, Real Madrid striker is facing a hefty jail sentence, which will end his career. After five years, the trial about Mathieu Valbuena’s sex tape has begun, and Karim Benzema is accused of complicity in the act of blackmail. If convicted, Benzema could face up to 5 years in jail. In the interview with Le Monde, former France international Mathieu Valbuena explained that the video fell into the hands of the blackmailers after he changed his mobile phone. He had asked a man, known in football circles for supplying players with the latest phones and computers, to transfer the material on his old telephone to the new. He found the sex video of Valbuena and his girlfriend and tried to blackmail him. And then Karim Benzema approached him with the offer to help him. In the end, both players were omitted from the French national team, and after almost six years, 5 men have been put on trial: Axel Angot, Mustapha Zouaoui, Younes Houass, Karim Zenati and Karim Benzema. After he is done with Shakhtar – Benzema should fly straight to court?And even thou Karim Benzema always stated that he is innocent and wanted the trial, when it finally started, he was absent, giving the sports reasons – he is preparing for El Classico.„It is a very important trial for him, which has hurt him a lot. He follows, he is represented, and we still have two days of hearing to make the court understand that no, Mr. Benzema was not an accomplice in blackmail” said his lawyer to RMC Sport. Karim Benzema is again absent today. Meanwhile, Mustapha Zouaoui continues his attempt at incriminating Djibril Cissé and turns to Valbuena to apologise for “the wrong he’s done”, and that were the midfielder to kick him he would not say a word. (@gdufy)— Get French Football News (@GFFN) October 21, 2021 Vabuena was disappointed that only Karim failed to show up and talked about the incident. He was warned first by Djibril Cisse that there is a sex tape of him, but his teammate stopped there, while Karim Benzema approached Vabuena and wanted to help him, and kept insisting that he should go and see his “brother” Karim Zenati. “He insisted that I meet with someone, but he didn’t give me his name. After the meeting, I realised that Benzema was part of the affair. I felt like he wanted to make me scared. I was afraid for my sporting career, for the France national team. I knew that if the video came out, it would be complicated for me in the France national team. I felt in danger, my first instinct was to file a complaint. There was never talk of a sum of money, but there was a threat from people who told me that they had something on me. He never spoke to me about money, I have always said that, but he was insistent. He did not want to help me, he said to me ‘this is serious, the Euros are just around the corner’. Benzema is not here. It’s a pity, but that’s the way it is. I’ll go all the way to the end to put it all behind me“ Valbuena revealed on the first day of the trial.Breaking | President of the Tribunal may deliver his verdict on the 5 accused in the Mathieu Valbuena sextape blackmail trial earlier than expected, as soon as tomorrow, according to RMC. He reserves the right to take longer, but the President’s tendency is to get on with it.— Get French Football News (@GFFN) October 21, 2021 Axel Angot, plead guilty to the crime of attempted blackmail. He was repairing Valbuena’s mobile phone and discovered the video in the first place. He then went to his friend Mustapha Zouaoui to discuss what to do. “We had a discussion when we talked about how if Valbuena came, he might pay us. Zouaoui’s aim was to get him to come and get the video back” Angot said, according to BFM.One of the accused shared the video around. “I saw the video, we laughed at it. I passed it on to everyone, not just Benzema. Djibril Cisse was in it. Many players from the France team have seen the video. There was no blackmail, we didn’t ask for money” one of the alleged blackmailers is quoted as saying by BFMTV.Benzema’s lawyer again insisted that there is nothing else his client did but to offer help. “Karim Benzema’s version is simple: a friend tells him that he can solve the problem of Mr. Valbuena, Mr. Valbuena being the victim of the possibility of a sextape being broadcast, summarizes in his way: Me, Benzema will see Mr. Valbuena in a room at Clairefontaine telling him that if he wishes – and there is no question of money or pressure – he knows someone who can, perhaps, solve this problem. He tells him that he can give him his number. Mister Valbuena answers no, and it stops there. There is no further conversation, no other problem” said Benzema’s lawyer to RMC Sports.Who needs Messi and Ronaldo in the upcoming ‘El Clasico’ when Benzema is unplayableBut, on the second day of the trial, evidence was presented, and in a telephone call between Benzema and his friend Zenati, Valbuena was the main topic. Benzema: “I saw him.” Zenati: “And?” Benzema: “He’s not taking us seriously.” Zenati: “So he’s not going to budge?” Benzema: “I said to Valbuena: if you want the video destroyed, go see my friend. No police, no lawyers. Djibril Cissé had the same thing (a sextape of him). He paid.”When presented with the recordings, Zenati, who was also convicted of armed robbery and drug trafficking in a separate trial said:“No this phone call with Karim was just friends messing around. It was silly looking back on it but we did not cross a red line”. Zenati added that he was sacked by Benzema after the events came to light and that he has not been allowed to be in contact with his childhood friend.The trial finished on Friday, when the judge will pass the final judgment.
