Benzema, 33, last played for France in October 2015 but was sidelined after he was accused of involvement in a sextape affair against fellow player Mathieu Valbuena. The trial is to take place in October.

“I am so proud of my return to the French team and of the trust placed in me,” Benzema wrote on Twiter.

“Thank you to my family, my friends, my club, and you … and to all those who have always supported me and given me strength on a daily basis,” he added.

Benzema has 81 caps and 27 goals for Les Bleus. His last goal was a brace against Armenia (4-0) on 8 October 2015 in Nice.

He has enjoyed a successful season with Real madrid, scoring 29 goals in 45 games.

His coach, former French international Zinedine Zidane, said recently: “I think he’s the best French centre-forward in history.”

“He has played for Real Madrid for a very long time, he has made more than 500 appearances, all the goals… At the end of the day, his record, everything he has achieved here speaks for itself.”

Since arriving in 2009, he has scored almost 300 goals for the Spanish club. He was also crowned the best player in the Spanish league in 2020, becoming Real’s key attacking asset after the departure in 2018 of superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. And he has just been crowned best French player abroad at the traditional UNFP Trophies in France.

Even the president of the French federation Noël Le Graët has recognised this: “In my opinion, he has had the best season of his career” in 2019-2020, he agreed last summer in an interview with RMC Sport.

Source: EuroNews