The history of dual nationals at Olympique Lyonnais and the Algeria national team is rich.
Many players have previously oscillated between the Greens and the Blues before choosing one of the two selections.
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Khalis Merah is a new Franco-Algerian gem from the Rhone club.
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Although he has been called up to France's youth teams, the Algerian Football Federation still hopes to persuade him to represent the national team and is even considering formalizing this approach.
The FAF wants to quickly formalize Khalis Merah's commitment
Trained at Meyzieu and OL, 19-year-old Merah established himself last season in the professional squad of the Lyon club, participating in 33 matches and scoring one goal.
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This promising midfielder has been selected since 2023 for the U17s of the Blues, then the U19s, and finally the U20s.
As part of its new strategy regarding young dual nationals, the FAF aims to "secure" this talent as soon as possible by inviting him to a training camp with the national team.
Discussions have already taken place with the player's father, who reportedly agreed to let his son represent the country of his roots.
The player himself is also in favor of the idea of choosing Algerian sporting nationality.
Khalis Merah is back from injury, and the federation is expected to act as soon as he regains his level and place in the Lyon squad.
OL and the pressures on its Franco-Algerian players
At the Algerian Football Federation, they are aware that given his performances on the field, the player could be called up by the France team at any moment.
It would then be complicated for him to decline such an opportunity, as several Lyon players have done in the past.
Especially since OL has a reputation for pressuring its Franco-Algerian players to choose the Blues.
This was notably the case for Nabil Fekir in 2015. In addition to Fekir, Karim Benzema and Rayan Cherki also preferred France, while Yassine Benzia, Rachid Ghezzal, and Amine Gouiri chose Algeria.
Houssem Aouar is a special case. He initially responded to a call-up from Didier Deschamps in 2020, but after failing to establish himself with the Blues, he decided to represent Algeria in 2023.
