“Aouar? It’s not done yet.” slipped in early February the president of the Algerian Federation, Djahid Zefizef, on the occasion of a meeting organized by Fifa in Paris. A statement which aimed to calm things down a bit, when he had announced a month earlier that the OL player had “given his agreement” to join the Algerian selection. The boss of the FAF will soon be able to get rid of the tweezers: Houssem Aouar will announce his wish to represent Algeria, his parents’ country, assured the newspaper The Team Tuesday.
A selection with the Blues
The Lyon midfielder, 24, has been courted for a long time now. He had been called up to the France team by Didier Deschamps in October 2020, even coming into play during the big victory against Ukraine (7-1). But his decline in influence in the club, where he gradually became a substitute until he only played utilities this season (only 10 appearances), took him away from the Blues.
His only cap being a friendly match, Aouar (17 selections with the Espoirs) has every right to defend the colors of Algeria, African champion 2019. This choice made, he could potentially be called by coach Djamel Belmadi from the end of March for the next two matches against Niger, in the CAN qualifiers. His state of health (he is coming back from injury) suggests, however, that he must wait for the next rally.