France and Real Madrid centre-forward Karim Benzema has responded to criticism from French president Francois Hollande by saying that "my parents brought me up very well."
Benzema is currently embroiled in an investigation into alleged extortion of France teammate Mathieu Valbuena, while in 2014 he was previously involved in a probe into underage prostitution, a case in which he was acquitted.
In a new book entitled 'Un president ne devrait pas dire ca...' [A President shouldn't say that...'] Hollande talks about French footballers being transformed overnight from "badly brought up kids into rich stars" who need "gym classes for the brain" and says that Benzema in particular was not "an example of morality."
Asked about these comments after Madrid's 5-1 Champions League win over Legia Warsaw on Tuesday night at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, the Les Bleus star told Le Parisien that it was difficult to respond but that he was a footballer who had been raised well by his family.
"What do you want me to say to you?" Benzema said. "That I am not a good example? I play football, I entertain the fans and I was brought up well by my parents."
Benzema was recently cleared by the French Football Association to return to play for the national team, but has not yet been recalled to a squad by coach Didier Deschamps, with the Valbuena case still ongoing.
Asked if he wanted to get back playing for his country soon, the 28-year-old said he was hopeful of a recall but "not anxious" about the situation.
"We will see," Benzema said. "There is no need to talk about this all the time. I must play well for my club. I hope to get the call from the national team, but I am not anxious about it. It is important for me to return, but that's all."
Earlier in the week Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, a former France national captain who won the 1998 World Cup with his country, said that Hollande's comments were unfortunate and had "annoyed" him.