Nantes' Hadjam misses match after opting not to break Ramadan fast

Nantes defender Jaouen Hadjam was absent for his side's 3-0 defeat to Reims on Sunday because he didn't want to break the Ramadan fast, coach Antoine Kombouare said.

Muslim players who observe the fast during the holy month of Ramadan receive support from the club, Kombouare said.

They are exempt from team meals and the second training session on days when two are scheduled.

"But on match day, you don't have to fast. It's very intense, you have to be ready. And those who fast aren't in the group. I don't want them to injure themselves," Kombouare said.

The ex-Nantes player -- who was the first coach sacked by Paris Saint-Germain following the takeover by its current owners -- has always applied the rule at his clubs but it's the first time it has led to a player's absence on match day.

"In the week, there are no worries for those who fast, I'm ready to support them," he said, adding they were aware it is not an easy time.

Nantes has six players this year observing Ramadan, during which Muslims abstain from food and water from sunrise to sunset. It began this year on March 22.  

Twenty-year-old Hadjam, who arrived in January from Paris FC, is the only one to also observe it on match days.

"It's his choice, I respect it," Kombouare said.

Unlike England's Premier League which allows it, France's football federation has told referees they must not pause matches to allow Muslim players to break their fast during Ramadan, media reports said last week.

The practice does not comply with the French Football Federation's statutes, several media reported the body as saying in an email sent to referees.