West Ham playmaker Dimitri Payet has been praised by former France and Chelsea star Frank Leboeuf as being an "artist" who draws fans to matches, but insists the 28-year-old must improve his teamwork to have a chance of going to Euro 2016.
Payet has received plaudits since joining the Hammers from Marseille in the summer, scoring five goals in 13 league games which has cemented his place in Slaven Bilic's starting XI.
Indeed, the influence he has had has been clear to see during his recent absence with an ankle injury, during which time the Hammers only managed to win one game.
Despite his superb form in the Premier League, though, Payet has not been called up to the France team by Didier Deschamps, which the forward recently described as being an "injustice".
The Les Bleus coach suggested the exclusion has been for non-footballing reasons, but Deschamps' former teammate at Chelsea Leboeuf has called on the France boss to give Payet a chance to show what he can do for the national side.
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"I hope he plays for France this summer – he is someone who can create things," the 1998 World Cup winner said.
"He is an artist - people come to the stadium to watch people like him play. Now he has to improve his teamwork – there have been a few mishaps – and he has got to get back into Didier Deschamp’s heart. But he definitely worth his place."
He added: "The cards have been re-dealt with the arrival of [Lassana] Diarra so the midfield positions are quite filled up already.
"And it is possible that Didier Deschamps goes more towards a 4-3-3. But I don’t see any attacking midfielders there. On top of that you have to sort out the problem Valbuena-Benzema, who might or might not be there."
