Roberto Martinez has revealed an unsuccessful attempt to convince a Premier League star to play for Portugal ahead of the World Cup.
Portugal's 26-man squad was officially released on Sunday, with many representatives from the English Premier League, with Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Dalot, Matheus Nunes, Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva joining captain Cristiano Ronaldo in the squad.
Also on the list are Paris Saint-Germain duo João Neves and Vitinha, while West Ham midfielder Matheus Fernandes has been left out.
But one of the main topics was Martinez's revelation that Portugal had tried to convince Bournemouth striker Junior Kroupi to represent Portugal.
The 19-year-old has been in outstanding form for the Cherries, scoring 12 Premier League goals as a teenager and setting a joint-record.
He is eligible to play for Portugal through his mother, but was born in France and also has family ties to Ivory Coast through his father, Eli, a former player for that country.
According to Martinez, Kroupi rejected the offer after deciding to represent France.
“Before the March camp, we contacted him,” Martinez said.
"But it's one thing to contact players who can wear the Portugal shirt, and another thing is the player's own wish. In this case, Junior wants to represent France and we respect that," Martinez continued.
Meanwhile, France has already published its list and Kroupi is not part of the 26 players selected by Didier Deschamps.
He was part of a very strong attacking unit that includes Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélén, Désiré Douén, Bradley Barcolan, Michael Olisen and Jean-Philippe Matetan.
However, under a new coach in the future, Kroupi may still have a chance to break into the French national team after the World Cup.
Portugal is in Group K of the tournament, where they will face DR Congo, Uzbekistan and Colombia.
Another surprise on the list was the absence of Tottenham's João Palhinha, who has 37 caps for the national team but will not be part of the World Cup.
On the other hand, João Félix, Pedro Neto and Rafael Leão have been included in the squad for the tournament./Express newspaper/
t7 live
