Hugo Ekitike sent clear message as Liverpool star misses out on France call up
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France head coach Didier Deschamps has sent Hugo Ekitike a clear message that, despite missing out on the national squad for September’s fixtures, he is under consideration for future camps.
Despite making an impressive start to life at Liverpool, the forward was overlooked by Deschamps when France’s squad was announced on Wednesday for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Ukraine and Iceland.
France has an array of attacking talent, with Kylian Mbappe, Bradley Barcola, Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembele among those selected by Deschamps.
Explaining his decision in a press conference shortly after the announcement, Deschamps said: “Hugo, because of what he did last season and at Liverpool, we were already following him at Frankfurt.
“Good for him
I’m not going to pile up players, but he has the potential for the French team.”
On the inclusion of Akliouche, who has been capped at youth level and produced seven goals and 12 assists last season for Monaco, Deschamps said: “Maghnes Akliouche is more of a winger.
“He had a good season with Monaco, he can still improve his effectiveness, but he’s doing some interesting things.”
Deschamps has opted not to select Ekitike
As for Ekitike, he has scored in all of his first three matches for Liverpool, becoming the first player to do so since Daniel Sturridge in 2013.
Having joined from Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer for a fee of up to £79million ($107M), doubts were raised about whether Ekitike was ready to lead the line this season in the Premier League, especially after just one full season at an elite level in his career.
Ironically, he has settled more quickly than the Reds’ more established signings, such as Milos Kerkez and Florian Wirtz.
Ekitike has scored in his first three Liverpool matches