DOHA, Nov 20 (Reuters) - France coach Didier Deschamps has decided not to replace injured striker Karim Benzema in his World Cup squad, leaving the reigning champions with 25 players for their title defence.
Asked on Sunday by TeleFoot whether he would replace the Ballon d'Or winner in his squad, Deschamps said "No".
Benzema was the second French player to join the casualty list in less than a week after forward Christopher Nkunku was injured in a training session and replaced in the squad by Randal Kolo Muani.
Influential midfielders Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante were ruled out of the tournament by injury before Deschamps named his squad.
"Of course, it is bad news for France, and we feel like we're cursed, because it's just player after player out, and then it ends up with Karim Benzema being hurt during training," Parisian fan Samuel Pautrat said.