23-year-old was initially left out of Didier Deschamps’s plans but was invited after Cherki was sidelined
Liverpool forward Hugo Ekitike has earned his first call up to the France squad after Manchester City’s midfielder Rayan Cherki was ruled out for around eight weeks with a quadricep injury.
Ekitike has been brilliant for Liverpool, scoring in three out of four competitive fixtures for the Premier League champions so far, but he was left out of Didier Deschamps’s plans for the World Cup qualifiers in September.
The 23-year-old was kept out by other young French talent, several of whom made their debuts over the past year, including Paris Saint Germain duo Bradley Barcola and Desire Doue, Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise, and Cherki.
Other more established internationals in the squad are PSG’s Ousmane Dembele, Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe, and Inter Milan’s Marcus Thuram.
Cherki made his debut for France only last June. He joined City from Lyon this summer but sustained an injury in training and was absent from the matchday squad at the Amex.
The French Football Federation announced on Sunday that scans revealed a torn muscle in the player’s left thigh, ruling him out of this month’s World Cup games against Ukraine and Iceland.
Deschamps turned to Ekitike once Cherki’s withdrawal was confirmed. France face Ukraine in Paris on Thursday before travelling to Reykjavik to meet Iceland three days later.
