Senegal captain and Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly revealed why he chose to represent Senegal over France at the age of three or 24.

Koulibaly played for the France Under-20s for a year from 2011 to 2012 before he decided to represent Senegal starting in 2015.

During his statements, Coulibaly said: “It was an important choice because I could play for the French national team, but at the age of 23 or 24 I decided to represent Senegal because I was expected.”

He added: “At the time he was talking to the coach, he gave me good motivation and good reasons to come, I also talked to my family, my father was the most important person, they already told me that I should do what I want .”

He concluded: “But when I told them that I wanted to play for Senegal, I saw the sparkle in their eyes and realized how important it was and a good choice, when I joined the Senegal team and saw my other teammates, it was like they were my family, because we all ate the same food and spoke the same language, so it was like I was at home, I said to myself: “Why didn’t I come earlier? They are like brothers to me.”

Eddie Khoury