Comparing Ballon d’Or Winners Messi and Benzema’s First 3 Games at Inter Miami and Al Ittihad

• Lionel Messi got off to a flying start to life as a new Inter Miami player in his first three games
• Reigning Ballon d'Or winner Benzema is having it good as well in the Saudi Pro League
• Benzema succeeded Messi as the best player in the world, and the Argentine could reclaim the crown after winning the World Cup

Lionel Messi and Karim Benzema are winners of the last two Ballon d'Or titles, with the France international being the current holder after beating competition from Sadio Mane and Kevin De Bruyne to win it.

Both have joined new clubs since their last triumphs; Messi moved to Major League Soccer with Inter Miami, while Benzema followed Cristiano Ronaldo's footsteps to Saudi Arabia with Al-Ittihad.

Sports Brief looks at how both have performed in their first three games at their respective clubs.

Messi leaves fans speechless as he scores amazing freekick on Inter Miami debut, video

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Messi's first three games

In what could have been but did not happen, Messi rejected a world record offer from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal to join David Beckham's MLS franchise Inter Miami, as reported by NBC News.

He made his debut in the Leagues Cup game against Mexican club Cruz Azul as a substitute, and he produced a moment of magic by scoring a match-winning freekick in the last minute in front of American celebrities like LeBron James, Serena Williams, and Kim Kardashian amongst others.

He hit a brace in his second game to help his new club to a 4-0 win over Atlanta United and repeated the feat in his last game against Orlando City to send his team to the Leagues Cup round of 16 and take his tally to 5 goals and one assist.

Benzema's first three games

The France international left Real Madrid after 14 years and joined the moving train to Saudi Arabia. According to Football365, he earns a reported £172m per year, only behind former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo.

Comparing Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Debuts in MLS and Saudi Pro League

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Like Messi, he has also played three games for his new club in the Arab Champions Cup. He came off the bench to score the winner on his debut against ES Tunis.

He scored the only goal of the win against CS Sfaxien and yet again came clutch in his third game with the winning goal from the spot against Al-Shorta to send the Tigers to the quarter-final and take his tally to 3 goals and one assist.

Why Messi chose Inter Miami

Sports Brief reported on Sergio Aguero explaining Messi's decision to join Inter Miami despite receiving a lucrative world-record offer from Saudi club Al-Hilal.

Aguero, a close pal of the Argentina captain, claimed the decision was made due to his family and to settle in an environment where they feel most comfortable.