Didier Deschamps defends Karim Benzema

France coach Didier Deschamps has insisted that Karim Benzema remains an important part of his team.

The Real Madrid forward has gone 929 minutes without scoring for his country following his failure to find the target against Georgia in Les Bleus' 3-1 home victory on Friday.

"I have faith in Karim," Deschamps told Ligue1.com. "You just have to look at the public comments of his teammates after the Georgia game.

"I won't deny that Karim had chances against Georgia and didn't score. The competition for places is there for everybody. It's not the best thing for the confidence of players to have a go at them but the fans are free to make their feelings known.

"I prefer to have support and then whistles at the end of the game if the result is not good."

France will host Spain in a World Cup Group I qualifier on Tuesday.