Al-Ittihad Suffer Shock Loss In Iraq On Karim Benzema's AFC Champions League Debut

Captain Benzema played the full 90 minutes on Monday at the 25,000-capacity Franso Hariri Stadium in Erbil.

Fellow summer signings N'Golo Kante and Jota also started for Al-Ittihad but the home side - who came second in last season's Iraqi Premier League - thoroughly outplayed their illustrious visitors.

Nineteen-year-old Ali Jasim fired in from 11 yards to give Jawiya a deserved lead just before half-time.

Mohannad Abdul-Raheem then scored the second from closer range after some untidy Al-Ittihad defending.

Despite Monday's defeat, Al-Ittihad remain in a strong position in Champions League Croup C with nine points out of a possible 12.

However, the defense of their Saudi Pro League title is going less well. Al-Ittihad sit sixth in the table after 12 rounds of fixtures, 11 points behind leaders Al-Hilal.

Benzema has scored five goals in 10 SPL games - seven fewer than Cristiano Ronaldo has netted for rivals Al Nassr this season.

But Monday's game was Benzema's first appearance in the AFC Champions League.

The former Real Madrid forward did not feature in a 1-0 win over Jawiya in October or in the 3-0 victory over Uzbekistan's AGMK in September.

Al-Ittihad's second group game did not take place. It was abandoned after players from the Saudi club refused to take to the field against Sepahan due to the presence of a pitch-side statue depicting Qassem Soleimani, the late head of Iran's Quds Force.

The AFC later fined Sepahan $200,000 for breaching its fair play regulations and the game was awarded to Al-Ittihad as a default 3-0 win.