Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema was recently told he would never represent France again, to which he reacted by saying he would be happy to play for Algeria instead. How he could make that shock switch materialise has now seemingly been revealed.
Click through the gallery above to see some other French-born players of Algerian descent.
In response to French Football Federation (FFF) president Noel Le Graet's remarks that he will never be considered for France again, Benzema took to Twitter to say he wants to represent Algeria due to his Algerian origins.
Les Verts manager Djamel Belmadi responded by claiming he is more than happy with his current attacking options, but if Benzema were to actually become available one day, his opinion could very well change.
The 31-year-old is currently in the best goalscoring form of his career, having found the back of the net 41 times for his club since the beginning of the 2018/19 campaign. Benzema, however, last played for France four years ago, following his involvement in the blackmailing of Mathieu Valbuena over a sex tape in 2015.
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Despite his comments about potentially playing for Algeria, Benzema would not be able to make the switch at this time as he represented Les Bleus in competitive matches, with Article 18 of FIFA's ruling stating that "any player who has already participated in a match (either in full or in part) in an official competition of any category or any type of football for one association may not play in an international match for a representative team of another association," as per RMadridEngineer on Twitter.
There could, though, be a way around these regulations, with Article 18.2 stating that "if a player who has played for his association in an official game permanently loses the nationality of that country without his consent by Govt move he may request permission to play for another association whose nationality he already has/has acquired."
Article 18.2 [FIFA] "if a player who has played for his association in an official game permanently loses the nationality of that country without his consent by Govt move he may request permission to play for another association whose nationality he already has/has acquired"
— Ashish ???? (@RMadridEngineer) November 16, 2019
3/5
In order to make the nationality switch happen, Benzema would need his French citizenship taken away from him, then submit a request to FIFA with the backing and approval of the Algerian government.
According to Marca, the striker could look to use the FFF president's comments against him, which may also strengthen his case if he were to seek an official nationality change.
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Benzema made 81 appearances for France, contributing to 45 goals overall.
Do you think Benzema should look to pursue an international career with Algeria? Let us know in the comments section below.
