After being told he will never represent France again, Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema responded by suggesting he would happily play for Algeria. Les Verts' manager has now reacted to the superstar's comments.
Click through the gallery above to see some other French-born players of Algerian descent.
The 31-year-old has been in incredible form for Los Blancos over the past two seasons, but had his hopes of returning to the French set-up ended when French Football Federation president Noel Le Graet said the striker will never be called up to the national team again.
An angry and disappointed Benzema took to Twitter to respond to the president's statement, saying he would love to play for Algeria, the country he could have represented before starting an international career with France.
Although the striker is unlikely to be allowed to swap nationalities anyway, his comments did reach Algeria boss Djamel Belmadi, who, in response, insisted he is happy with the attackers he has at his disposal.
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"I have (Baghdad) Bounedjah, Islam (Slimani), (Andy) Delort, (Hillal) Soudani," he told DZFoot.
"I'm very happy with the players I have."
Benzema last played for France in 2015, but was kicked out of the squad following his involvement in the blackmailing of Mathieu Valbuena over a sex tape.
Last month, manager Didier Deschamps shared a similar sentiment, saying he does not think it would be good for the squad if Benzema were to be recalled.
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The striker has made 81 appearances for Les Bleus, scoring 27 goals and assisting a further 18 strikes.
Although it seems highly unlikely, would you like to see Benzema in an Algeria shirt? Let us know in the comments section below.
