According to a blog post on Yahoo! Eurosport by the manager himself, Arsene Wenger believes his summer signing Mathieu Flamini deserves a crack at the French national side, as the international week sets in with 2 World Cup qualifiers due in these two weeks.

The end of last season brought a sense of hope to Arsenal fans, as the side performed consistently and grabbed the final UEFA Champions League spot. Meanwhile, the summer brought hope for Wenger, who was assured surplus funds to be made available for desired signings. However, when the manager realized that the market was over inflated with sky rocketing transfer fees’, Wenger decided to approach Flamini, who was due to sign a new contract with his then club AC Milan, to fulfill his midfield needs. Flamini was more than happy to take up the offer, and signed a deal with his former club.

The influential midfielder was a part of a young Arsenal squad built by Wenger between 2004 and 2008, and consisted of then talents like Cesc Fabregas, Alexander Hleb and Flamini himself of course. Having played 102 matches in the period and scoring 7 goals, Flamini had become an integral part of the squad, and was being targeted by clubs all over Europe. And it was indeed a European giant that was successful in luring the player out of Arsenal. Flamini decided in 2008 that it was time to leave and left for Milan. From 2009, Flamini established his place in the Milan squad alongside other experienced players, and played 96 matches during his spell at the San Siro.

The FIFA World Cup begins in June 2014, and there are quite a few spots up for grabs in the French squad. Wenger believes Flamini still has the cutting edge the national side needs to succeed at the top level. Didier Deschamps has a task like all other managers to decide the best possible squad by next year, and there are several players who are looking to get into the side.

Wenger believes Flamini’s positive attitude and physical condition are fit to help France in their quest.