It has now come to light that Karim Benzema declined a request to attend a Friday night honors event hosted by France. At the Stadium de France in Paris, France’s Euro 2024 campaign will get underway against the Netherlands.
Subscribe to our newsletter!
A group of retired French internationals will be honored prior to the game, and Benzema will be noticeably absent. After the World Cup in Qatar, where he allegedly had a falling-out with head coach Didier Deschamps, the Real Madrid star recently announced his retirement from international competition.
The team that won the UEFA Nations League in 2021 included the current Ballon d’Or winner, who only recently made his return to international competition. He was then selected for the World Cup team, but a few days prior, he was injured, keeping him from competing. The 35-year-old, who may have been eligible for the gold had France defeated Argentina in the championship game, was never replaced in the team.
Deschamps and he have recently disagreed, with the Los Blancos captain using his social media accounts to make subtle jabs at him. According to GFFN, Ronald Koeman’s team will honor Hugo Lloris, Raphael Varane, Steven Mandanand, and Blaise Matuidi prior to the match. Benzema reportedly declined the invitation since he would not be available, despite being invited.
Sports Brief earlier stated that Benzema appeared to be calling France manager Didier Deschamps a liar after the latter gave an interview about his World Cup injuries.
The Frenchman left the team hotel in Qatar after the Real Madrid forward abandoned training due to a left thigh injury that prevented him from competing. Karim Djaziri Djaziri, Benzema’s attorney, thinks the 35-year-old would have been ready for the knockout stages of Les Bleus’ World Cup campaign if he had stayed on.
