Football
Mark Rodden 8y

Sevilla's Kevin Gameiro feeling 'forgotten' after France omission

Sevilla striker Kevin Gameiro has said that he has felt forgotten about after his move from France to Spain.

Gameiro, 29, has scored 29 goals in all competitions this season including the equaliser in the Europa League final as Sevilla came from behind to beat Liverpool 3-1.

But the former Paris Saint-Germain player has not played for France since November 2011 and was only named on their standby list for Euro 2016.

Despite Sevilla winning the Europa League three years in a row, he feels their relatively low profile in France explains why he has been underappreciated in his homeland.

"I was a little forgotten this last while," Gameiro told RMC. "I've been at Sevilla for three years and I've managed to make a name for myself.

"I've had some flattering comments from some very big Spanish names. You see too that there are some very big clubs interested in me.

"I work hard every year to try to be as effective as possible for my club. It's true that Sevilla are not well publicised in France unfortunately -- because they're really a very big club with history."

Meanwhile, Gameiro's teammate Adil Rami told the same station that he feels like his reputation has almost been called into question by France coach Didier Deschamps.

There was no place for Rami, 30, in France's Euro 2016 squad despite another centre-back, Liverpool's Mamadou Sakho, being left out because he is serving a provisional 30-day ban for an anti-doping violation.

To explain his decision-making process, Deschamps said he was not necessarily picking the best 23 French players but gathering a squad that he felt would get on well enough together to win next month's tournament.

Rami said those comments could cast doubt on players like him.

"You have to ask Didier Deschamps the question about my absence," he told RMC. "I was really disappointed by one thing. His talk about not taking the best players on the pitch, but the best players to form a squad.

"I have the impression that he's insinuating that I'm not a good guy and that I'm a lout. If we're talking football, I don't see why I'm not at the Euros."

Rami said Deschamps advised him to leave Milan for Sevilla to boost his chances of playing at Euro 2016.

After featuring in over 40 matches in La Liga, the Champions League and the Europa League this season, Rami is aggrieved that he will not get a chance to be involved for France.

He said: "At a certain point, you have to take into account the statistics, the number of matches and the opponents that you've played against. I've taken on Barcelona, Real, Juventus, without talking about Valencia or Atletico Madrid.

"I feel a little injustice because the criteria for being included in the French team are the same for everyone."

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