Kakuta Gets U19 French Call-up?

The Fédération Française de Football (FFF), France’s governing football body, this week made the peculiar decision to include Gael Kakuta in their U19 squad for next week’s Limoges Tournament.  You’ll recall the FFF were instrumental in getting Kakuta banned for four months by FIFA as part of the Chelsea transfer ban. If you go on the FFF website, however, there is Kakuta‘s name for the call-up notwithstanding the player is currently serving his ban. Is this the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing? Looks like the FFF suits failed to notify the FFF U19 selectors of this minor problem.

Barely two months after French football smiled with glee at seeing a bigger, more wealthy adversary punished for their greed, they stumble over themselves. And to think this gigantic dose of football irony so nearly passed under the radar.

Who knows what French U19 coach Francis Smerecki was thinking when he wrote Kakuta’s name down in the squad but the fact of the matter is that until Chelsea hear back from the Court of Arbitration for Sport over their appeal proceedings, Kakuta is more likely to be playing Subbuteo than kicking a ball for France.

No skipping around this one for France and Kakuta

—

See the French U19 squad in full (featuring Kakuta’s daft inclusion) on the FFF website.