Karim Benzema has appeared to take a swipe at France boss Didier Deschamps after the striker’s agent released images of his medical tests to show the player was fit to play in the World Cup knockout stages.
Benzema confirmed his retirement from international duty last week after reportedly cutting off all contact with coaching staff following the fallout to his injury. The striker had been awarded a place in the France squad for the World Cup but was subsequently ruled out of the tournament with a thigh injury.
The Ballon d'Or winner had been set to play a leading role at the World Cup but did not play a minute for Les Bleus, even though he could have returned to the set-up during the competition having regained fitness and been named in the initial squad.
Benzema even rejected an invite from French president Emmanuel Macron to be part of his private entourage that flew from France to watch Sunday’s final in Qatar. It followed on from the striker cryptically posting on Instagram, saying in French: "Not interested."
Benzema’s agent Karim Djaziri subsequently released images of the striker’s medical results during the tournament, which appeared to prove that the Real Madrid star was fit to return to the France squad for the knockout stages of the World Cup – but was overlooked.
The French striker then posted on social media after Djaziri posted images of his medical tests, in what appears to be a dig at Deschamps: “Cause once you look at it, you know!”
Benzema left the France World Cup squad two days before their opening group stage game against Australia, but the striker was always confident that he would be fit to compete in the latter stages of the tournament should his side make it.
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However, despite posting images of his recovery at Real Madrid’s facilities going quicker than expected and medical tests appearing to show he would have been fit to play in the nation’s Round of 16 game, there was no further contact from the French camp to the player.
The Real Madrid striker enjoyed a stunning year at club level as his goals fired the Spanish giants to the title in La Liga and Champions League glory, culminating in his Ballon d’Or award this year to reflect his achievements.
He was expected to star in the World Cup but his injury changed the France plan, with Olivier Giroud replacing him in the starting line-up. The Milan striker netted four goals in the tournament and became his nation’s all-time leading goal scorer in the process.
