Algeria Football Federation president Kheireddine Zetchi has revealed he's spoken to Leicester City pair Riyad Mahrez and Islam Slimani after their axing.

Algeria coach Lucas Alcaraz declared on Monday they planned to go with new players, which meant senior trio Mahrez, Slimani and Nabil Bentaleb, of Schalke, being omitted.

Zetchi told Le Buteur: "I confirm having had a discussion with Mahrez and Slimani yesterday. I appreciated the fact that they called me. This proves that they love the national team, and that they wanted to understand why they were not selected.

"I realized they were both disappointed, but I'm glad they reacted like that.

"I could hear here and there that Mahrez would have asked me not to call him for this next round. I can tell you that this is completely wrong. Whether it is him or the others, these are the players who have given much to the national team and I know they still have a lot to give it."