Karim Benzema's lawyer says it was "surprising" to hear French Prime Minister Manuel Valls suggest that his client should not play for the national team again in the wake of the Mathieu Valbuena blackmail case.
Last month Real Madrid striker Benzema, 27, was charged with conspiracy to blackmail as part of an investigation into an attempt to extort funds from France team mate Valbuena, 31, using a sex tape.
The former Lyon forward denies any wrongdoing, but Valls said on Tuesday that a player whose conduct was not "exemplary" should no longer be considered for Les Bleus selection.
Benzema is set to talk about his situation for the first time with an interview to French television on Wednesday evening.
Ahead of that appearance on TF1, Benzema's lawyer Alain Jakubowicz questioned the intervention of Valls, who is also known for being a big fan of Barcelona.
"Is it the supporter of Barca or the prime minister who's spoken about a leading player of Real Madrid?" Jakubowicz told Le Parisien.
"More seriously, I'm surprised -- in the dramatic context in France [after the November terror attacks] -- that the prime minister of the republic might give an opinion in a very peremptory manner on a matter that he knows absolutely nothing about.
"I think he has other things to deal with."
Jakubowicz also indicated that Valbuena's evidence before a judge was not as damning as the Lyon winger's interview with Le Monde would lead people to believe.
In that interview, which was published last Friday, Valbuena said he had been "more than disappointed" by Benzema's behaviour.
Former Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse was also questioned in relation to the case in October but, in contrast to Benzema, he was released soon afterwards and thanked by his former Marseille teammate Valbuena.
Speaking on Wednesday night, Cisse, 34, said that Benzema could still have a future at international level.
"For the moment Karim Benzema has been charged but he hasn't been judged and he's not guilty," Cisse told RMC radio. "Let's give him the benefit of the doubt, the time to explain himself and let the law do its work.
"I'm waiting to see what he has to say -- like a lot of French people. But I'm not in favour of this [media] hype and I'll leave the law and the police to decide. They have the information.
"Don't be too nasty with him for the moment."
In a separate interview with RTL, Cisse said that if Benzema had acted inappropriately in his dealings with Valbuena he had most likely been "clumsy" rather than malicious.