Karim Benzema has hinted he has no intentions of returning to the France squad for the World Cup final - despite recovering from his injury.
The Real Madrid forward picked up a thigh issue on the eve of the tournament and has since missed Les Bleus' six matches in Qatar as they won five of those on route to the final. However, unlike the rest of their injury-stricken stars, Didier Deschamps decided not to replace Benzema in the rare chance he could be fit to play some part.
Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante, Presnel Kimpembe and Christopher Nkunku were ruled out entirely from the France squad and all four were replaced, but Benzema's situation was different. Having recovered from the injury he picked up, there was a slight chance the 34-year-old could fly out to Doha in an attempt to be in the squad for the final.
But it appears that Benzema has turned that opportunity down after posting an emphatic message on Instagram. In a post, Benzema said as translated into English: "I'm not interested". The caption was led by a selfie from Benzema with the forward looking a little unimpressed after reports suggested he could return to the France squad.
Benzema is understood to be in full training back with his club and was given the green light by Real Madrid to return to the Middle-East, or be at Lusail Stadium in any capacity. Should France lift the trophy for the third time, Benzema will be in line for a winners’ medal - but it now seems unlikely he will collect that in person.
Relevo reported on Thursday that the striker has been left disappointed by Deschamps' lack of enthusiasm about a potential reunion - hinting that was a possible reason behind his snub. France booked their place in the final of the tournament with a hard-fought 2-0 win over Morocco on Wednesday.
When asked about the possibility of Benzema returning after the game, Deschamps said: "I don't really want to answer that question. Next question." He then started grinning as he turned his head and said 'I do apologise.'
The Frenchman was asked about Benzema again in the group stages and similarly batted the question away. "Wow. Well, I’m not sure [what to say], that’s really not something that I’m thinking about," he said at the time. "You seem to know a lot about the situation but I haven’t really been following who has been saying what."
Benzema has been a key cog in the France wheel over the years, although he didn't play at the 2018 World Cup as Olivier Giroud led the line on route to winning the competition. The former Chelsea and Arsenal star has spearheaded the attack in Qatar, scoring four times and seems to be in the form of his career despite being 36 years of age.
