France have kept Lesley Ugochukwu firmly within their international setup after the former Chelsea midfielder was included in the latest Under-21 squad, Footynaija reports.
Ugochukwu was named by France U21 coach Gérald Baticle in a 25-man squad for four European Championship qualifiers between 25 September and 6 October.
The midfielder is due to be involved against Iceland in Reykjavík on 25 September before France travel to face Estonia four days later. They will then play Luxembourg and Switzerland in Orléans on 3 and 6 October.
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The selection gives Ugochukwu another opportunity to continue his long association with French youth football at a time when his international future has attracted interest from Nigeria.
The 22-year-old was born in Rennes and came through the academy at Stade Rennais before Chelsea signed him in 2023. He made 15 appearances for the London club before spending the 2024-25 season on loan at Southampton.
Burnley later signed him permanently, and he joined Galatasaray on loan in July 2026.
Ugochukwu has already made 12 appearances for France Under-21s. He has started each of those matches and has played 973 minutes, including five games in the current Euro 2027 qualifying campaign.
His family links to Nigeria are also well established. His uncle, former Super Eagles defender Onyekachi Apam, played for Rennes and represented Nigeria at the 2008 Olympic Games.
There have been reports that Ugochukwu could switch his international allegiance to Nigeria, including claims that he had begun the process of obtaining a Nigerian passport.
However, previous reports that he had formally started a switch were disputed. In February 2025, TheCable reported that a source within the Nigeria Football Federation said neither Ugochukwu nor Carney Chukwuemeka had submitted papers to change their international allegiance. Chukwuemeka now plays international football for Austria.
Ugochukwu has not played for France’s senior team, meaning his senior international future remains a separate issue from his continued involvement with the Under-21 side.
