Monaco sensation Mbappe earns first call in France football squad

Paris, March 17 (IANS) Teenage striker Kylian Mbappe got the nod from France's football squad for the first time as head coach Didier Deschamp named a 24-member squad here.

Mbappe, who scored 11 goals in his last 11 appearances for Monaco, on Wednesday helped the Ligue 1 club eliminate Manchester City in the Champions League last 16 with his opening goal.

"Quality doesn't have an age. We have already chosen many young players before him, and I think it's a good time," commented Deschamp on Thursday.

France will visit Luxembourg in the 2018 World Cup qualifications on March 25, and host Spain in a friendly three days later.

Mbappe joined his Monaco teammate Benjamin Mendy, Florian Thauvin of Marseille and Corentin Tolisso of Lyon as four newcomers to the national squad.

Ligue 1 defending champions Paris Saint-Germain contributed five players to Deschamp's newly-selected roster, followed by leaders Monaco, who had four promising stars in.

France lead World Cup qualifying Group A by three points, after recording three wins and one draw in previous rounds.

France squad:

Goalkeepers: Alphonse Areola (Paris Saint-Germain), Benoit Costil (Rennes), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur)

Defenders: Presnel Kimpembe (Paris Saint-Germain), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Layvin Kurzawa (Paris Saint-Germain), Benjamin Mendy (Monaco), Adil Rami (Sevilla), Bacary Sagna (Manchester City), Djibril Sidibe (Monaco), Samuel Umtiti (Barcelona)

Midfielders: N'Golo Kante (Chelsea), Thomas Lemar (Monaco), Blaise Matuidi (Paris Saint-Germain), Paul Pogba (Manchester United), Adrien Rabiot (Paris Saint-Germain), Corentin Tolisso (Lyon)

Forwards: Ousmane Dembele (Borussia Dortmund), Kevin Gameiro (Atletico Madrid), Olivier Giroud (Arsenal), Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid), Kylian Mbappe (Monaco), Dimitri Payet (Marseille), Florian Thauvin (Marseille).