New Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly has admitted Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema is the toughest opponent he has faced.

Kalidou Koulibaly just completed a €40million transfer from Italian side Napoli to English side Chelsea as replacement for Antonio Rudiger who left Chelsea for Real Madrid.

Speaking to French media outlet Onze Mondial, he said: “Of course, I prefer Sadio Mané because he is from Senegal like me and I hope he can win the Ballon d’Or one day, but Karim Benzema is in my view one of the best strikers in the world.

“Benzema is the forward I struggled against the most, as he is very, very intelligent. Just ask one of my friends, I said four years ago that he was the toughest I ever faced and his form now shows I was not wrong.”