France and Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema has snubbed a potential return to France’s World Cup squad in a provocative Instagram post.
Les Bleus will slugged it out with the La Albiceleste in a tricky 2022 World Cup Final at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar.
France head coach Didier Deschamps has proceeded on his World Cup journey without Karim Benzema after he was ruled out of the tournament following a thigh injury picked up on France’s training ground right there in Qatar.
Interestingly, Didier Deschamps did not call up a replacement for Karim Benzema after the injury, and the Ballon d’Or winner was eager to return to the squad after he recovered from the injury.
Real Madrid had confirmed Karim Benzema’s return from injury. He was spotted in the club’s training ground and was approved to rejoin his France teammates in Qatar following the injury.
Now, a smug press session by a cheeky World Cup journalist in Qatar ended Karim Benzema’s hope of returning to Les Bleus.
Didier Deschamps was the culprit, he did not pronounce it, but his body language was louder than his answer.
When asked whether he would feature Karim Benzema in the team’s starting lineup against Argentina in the final, Deschamps hissed and smirked, refusing to answer the question.
He even prodded the journalist to move to the next question, saying he could not answer the question.
His gesture was enough to convince the world that he won’t start or even welcome Karim Benzema to the bench in the final against Argentina.
Deschamps’s decision not to remove Benzema from the list and call a replacement when he was injured and refusing to welcome him back to the team is pretty perplexing.
Christopher Nkunku also picked up an injury right in Qatar during a training session. Deschamps immediately called for his replacement – Kolo Muani.
The coach was still eligible to replace the then injured striker but failed to do so, and now has hissed on the prospects of having him back.
Meanwhile, Karim Benzema has taken to his Instagram handle to respond to Didier Deschamps’ snub. The 35-year-old posted a picture of himself looking relaxed and happy and donning a baseball cap with his bushy beard. He added a provocative caption.
He wrote in the caption, “I’m not interested.”
Benzema is reportedly furious with the way in which Deschamps handled his injury and his potential return to the team.
The prolific striker was allegedly particularly upset with his manager saying: “What a pity Karim that you have to leave.”
It appears that Benzema felt hurt at being pushed out and forced to leave the squad behind in Qatar.
He has since regained full fitness, and even featured in a recent friendly for Real Madrid.
The LaLiga champions would have been happy to allow Benzema to return to Qatar, having made a quicker recovery than expected.
But neither the France coaching staff, nor the player himself, seem to want that to happen.
One man that wants Benzema to be at the final is French president Emmanuel Macron.
According to Marca, Macron wants the forward, as well as injured duo N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba, to be part of the group on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Argentina have welcomed Sergio Aguero and Giovani Lo Celso into their camp – with fellow unavailable players Joaquin Correa and Nicolas Gonzalez also set to be with their group at the final.
