Karim Benzema spotted in Old Jeddah with 'police escort' ahead of Saudi Pro League debut

French striker Karim Benzema reportedly paid a visit to Jeddah's old town on Sunday accompanied by a police escort, hours after arriving in Saudi Arabia for the next chapter of his footballing career.

Benzema went to a cafe in Jeddah with officials from the city’s Al Ittihad football club with which he signed a two-year contract last month, Saudi local media reported. 

He was also toured around Old Jeddah, according to the reports.

A video posted to social media by an Al Ittihad news account purportedly shows a car crawling through narrow streets in the city, following a police vehicle.

"This is how the legend Karim Benzema travels through the streets of Jeddah," the video’s caption read.

It is unclear if the news channel has official ties to the club, or is a fan account. Benzema does not appear in the footage, and The New Arab could not independently verify the video.

The club’s official Twitter account posted a video on Sunday of the arrival of its big signings from the past weeks in Jeddah — Benzema, Frenchman and former Chelsea star N’golo Kante, and Portuguese winger Joao Pedro Neves Filipe, better known as Jota.

"Jeddah welcomes one of the world's best football players, Karim Benzema, to its city!" another post from the football club’s Twitter account read.

The European stars were purchased by Al-Ittihad as part of a drive by Saudi Arabia to increase its football top flight’s world standing.

Top officials from the Gulf kingdom have said they want the Saudi Pro League to be among the ten best in the world by the end of the decade.

Riyadh has pumped money into the project, with the Sovereign Public Investment Fund (PIF) taking ownership of the top four clubs - Al Ahli, Al Hilal, Al Ittihad, and Al Nassr.

The next season of the Saudi Pro League will begin on 11 August.

However, the Saudi Pro League’s transfer window remains open until 20 September - giving it plenty of time to try to poach more players from overseas.

Among its targets is French midfielder Paul Pogba, who is reportedly weighing up an offer from Al Ittihad.

The 30-year-old, who is currently at Italian team Juventus, struggled with injury for much of last season.

Benzema was in Jeddah last month for his unveiling at Al Ittihad.