Clauss demands his place in France squad under Zidane: "I'm not giving up"

Jonathan Clauss has not given up on the France national team. Present on the Téléfoot set this Sunday, the OGC Nice defender publicly expressed his desire to feature in Zinédine Zidane’s plans, the new France manager since Didier Deschamps’ departure.

“Have I given up on the France team? No, never. It stays in the back of my mind. As long as I’m a footballer, I’ll be ready. Otherwise, I would have already retired,” said the former Marseille player, leaving little doubt about his international ambitions.

The statement comes in a context of open competition for the right-back position. Since taking office, Zidane has already managed four matches — two victories against Turkey, a draw against Italy and two wins against Belgium — relying notably on Pierre Kalulu and Jules Koundé in the right flank. Malo Gusto, meanwhile, had been left out of the new manager’s first squad list.

At 32, Clauss was not retained for the first gatherings of the Zidane era. But the player refuses to consider himself out of the running. He even joked, evoking the banter from his Nice teammates about his television appearance: “Maybe he watches Téléfoot on Sunday. They talk about Zidane everywhere, even when we’re at the physio.”

The message is sent, it remains to be seen whether the manager will hear it at the next gatherings.