Deschamps: Lacazette is on the right track
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| AFP |
France coach Didier Deschamps is backing striker Alexandre Lacazette to make his mark despite a poor start to the season. Deschamps called up Lacazette to the France squad for international friendlies against Armenia and Denmark after Rennes striker Paul-Georges Ntep had to pull out with a hamstring injury picked up against Monaco on Sunday.
Lacazette was voted French player of the year last season after topping the Ligue 1 scoring charts with 27 goals for Lyon. But he has struggled to hit the back of the net this term, missing a penalty against Reims on Saturday before finally notching his first goal from open play this season - and only second in total - as Lyon won 1-0.
"He's improving. He had a very unstable summer for various reasons," said Deschamps. "But Alex hasn't lost his qualities and his last match put the smile back on his face.
"It (his selection) is also to show him he's not been kicked out of the group. He's on the right track."
Meanwhile, Sevilla full-back Benoit Tremoulinas has had to pull out of the squad due to a muscle problem, with Roma's Lucas Digne called up as a replacement. France have already qualified for UEFA EURO 2016 as hosts but are playing friendlies throughout the qualifying period against the teams in Group I.