Surprise: Al-Hilal expel Karim Benzema!

The French striker in the eye of the storm

Al-Hilal have made a surprising call, weighing up whether to offload French striker Karim Benzema midway through the current season.

Saudi journalist Ahmed Al-Ajlan says Al-Hilal are exploring a financial settlement with Benzema, should they land a new goalscoring striker in the current summer transfer window.

The news broke a day after Benzema stirred up a crisis of his own. He objected to being substituted in the 70th minute during the 4-2 win over Al-Faisaly, on the opening round of the Roshn League.

Al-Hilal head coach Simone Inzaghi defended Benzema's anger after the final whistle, calling it natural for a striker to want as much playing time as possible.

The Frenchman joined Al-Hilal last winter on a free transfer, having terminated his contract with Al-Ittihad.

Since arriving, the former Real Madrid striker has turned out 14 times for "the Boss" across all competitions. He has scored 10 goals and set up five more.