France coach Didier Deschamps has given a somewhat cryptic response after being asked about rumours of Karim Benzema returning for the World Cup final.
Benzema was set to lead the line for his country in Qatar but disaster struck when the striker picked up a thigh injury the day before the tournament began.
With it expected to rule him out for three weeks, the decision was taken to send him back to Spain so he could receive treatment at his club, Real Madrid.
However, a replacement was never called up, meaning he technically remained a member of France’s World Cup squad.
Because of that, there has now been speculation that he could return to Qatar to play a part in the final of the tournament against Argentina.
Mundo Deportivo have reported that the 34-year-old is now fully participating in training at Real Madrid again and is fit enough for the club to be happy for him to rejoin France’s World Cup squad for their final match.
If that is the case, the decision now rests with Deschamps, and while bringing Benzema back seems somewhat far-fetched given that France have got all the way to the final without him, the manager refused to actually rule out doing so when asked about the possibility.
“I’d prefer to move on to the next question,” he said when asked after his team’s 2-0 win over Morocco in the semi-finals.
Even if he were to return, it’s highly unlikely that Benzema would play a huge part in the final with Olivier Giroud performing well in his absence, getting four goals in five starts at the tournament.
Source: 90min.com
