Franck Ribéry has confirmed he has no desire to overturn his decision to retire from international football, despite claims by the UEFA president, Michel Platin, that he must continue to represent Framce.
Last month, the Bayern Munich forward announced his international days were over, having been forced to miss the World Cup with a back injury.
Platini threatened the 31-year-old playmaker with a ban if he ignores a future call-up from France coach Didier Deschamps.
“If Deschamps calls him up, then he has to come to the national team,’’ Platini said. “That’s written in the Fifa statutes. If he doesn’t report for duty, then he would be banned for three matches for Bayern Munich.
“It is not the player’s decision whether he represents his country, it’s the decision of the coach. Ribéry cannot simply decide for himself whether he wants to play for France or not.”
But Ribéry believes the issue has already been resolved and insists he has played his last game for France.
“I have already said before I have retired from international duty and I will not go back on my decision,” he told the German newspaper Der Welt.
“I have discussed this with France coach Deschamps and we reached an agreement on it. I want to focus completely on Bayern Munich in the future. That’s all I want to say about the matter. I am not going to get involved in all the politics surrounding my decision.”
