Aurélien Tchouaméni quashes rumours surrounding Karim Benzema

Aurélien Tchouaméni has been one of France’s star performers so far at the World Cup. The Real Madrid player has become a key part of the national team’s midfield.

Still only 22, the former Monaco man put in a remarkable performance against Denmark on Saturday at the 974 Stadium in Doha, setting Kylian Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann away every time he stole the ball. Speaking to RMC Sport, the France international took the opportunity to deny L’Équipe’s report that the French camp was better without Benzema.

“The group is fine, we’re all living well together, and I wanted to talk about something we saw about Karim Benzema’s departure, about this information that we feel better since he’s not here. This is totally false, because even when he was still with us, things were going well. We all felt sad about his injury. In any case, what I can tell you is that since we arrived, things have been going very well between us,” Tchouaméni said.

‘Anti-Benzema’

L’Équipe had reported on Saturday, ahead of the match against Denmark, that the France dressing room had been happier and liberated since Benzema left the training camp in Doha. However, his team-mate, Tchouaméni, wanted to make it clear that there was no truth in the rumours and that before his injury, the team had been getting on well. The Ballon d’Or winner’s agent, Karim Djaziri, came to his client’s defence, branding the French newspaper ‘Anti-Benzema’.