Houssem Aouar, who only had one friendly selection with the France team in October 2020 against Ukraine (7-1), chose to give up the blue jersey definitively and could quickly wear the tunic of Fennecs. Aware that this decision earned him strong criticism, the 24-year-old delivered his vision of things.
“I am ready to face criticism. I understand them, it’s my choice. I am ready to face. When I saw that the president and the coach (of Algeria) came during my vacation to reach out to me, I saw it as a sign of fate. I don’t regret having worn the blue jersey. That’s not what I meant, it’s been misinterpreted, misunderstood and misunderstood. I said that I regret not having chosen Algeria earlier. It is not a choice against France, far from it. I was trained here, I’m French too. We like everything that is catchy, it’s a shame”he explained in this interview broadcast this Sunday on TF1.
“It is not a default choice”
Whistled by part of his own public when he entered the game against FC Nantes on Friday evening at Groupama Stadium (1-1), Aouar wanted to respond to those who accuse him of opportunism. “It’s a lack of respect for our country because there are very good players in Algeria. There are so many African players who are among the best in the world: Mané, Mahrez, Salah, Osimhen. It’s not a default choice at all. By making this choice, I was never told that it was going to be all acquired, that I was going to come and that I was going to have the necessary playing time. Not at all, I am on an equal footing with the rest of the group and available to the coach”he continued.