Mathieu Debuchy is frustrated once again after he was ignored for a France recall despite excelling since leaving Arsenal.
Debuchy signed for Saint-Etienne during the January window, ending a four-year injury-plagued hell at Arsenal.
Since returning to France, Debuchy has been voted Player of the Month for February, beating off competition from Neymar, while also scoring two goals in his six Ligue 1 appearances.
“Disappointment? A little yes,” Debuchy said via Google translate which has butchered the translation. “I am coming back from far. It’s been a while that I have not been selected and I did not play every weekend. This is not obvious.
“Now, the most important thing is to play good matches with Saint-Etienne, to win and to have fun. For now, that’s what’s happening.
“I’m going to focus on Saint-Etienne and we’ll see.”
Frustration is not a new emotion for Debuchy who existed in that state for most of his Arsenal career.
An ankle injury picked up just one month into his new life as an Arsenal player opened the door for Hector Bellerin and Debuchy never got another look-in, something that irked him greatly.
Of course, he wasn’t helped when Stoke’s Marko Arnautovic shoved him into the hoardings at the Emirates without punishment 35 days after he returned from that first injury, sidelining him until March.
A thigh problem 27 days after he returned from his shoulder injury finished off his first season.
During his time at the club, Debuchy spoke frequently about how he expected to just walk back into the Arsenal starting lineup when he was fit and was angered by Arsene Wenger’s refusal to allow him to join Manchester United.
In total, Debuchy played 30 games for Arsenal, scoring two and assisting one. He was at the club for 42 months and averaged a total of 58 minutes per month.