On 18 December 2010, in an interview
Algerian newspaper
Le Buteur, Ghoulam said that his intentions were to represent
Algeria in international competition despite being born in France. On 6 October 2011, after being called up to the preliminary squad of the
France under-21 team, Ghoulam said that he would be really proud to play for the team. On 23 November 2012, in an interview following a league game against
Valenciennes, Ghoulam announced that he was going to represent
Algeria at the
2013 Africa Cup of Nations. A few days later, the
Algerian Football Federation confirmed the information through a press release on its website. Ghoulam was selected in the Algeria squad for the
2013 Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa but he did not participate in any games. On 26 March 2013, Ghoulam made his debut as a starter in a 3–1 win over
Benin in the
2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, providing the assist on the first Algerian goal. Ghoulam represented Algeria at the
2014 World Cup finals as
les Fennecs reached the round of 16, where they were beaten by eventual champions
Germany after
extra time. He started in both the match against Germany and the 2–1 group stage loss to
Belgium. In Algeria's opening match of the
2015 Africa Cup of Nations, Ghoulam scored his first international goal to give the team a 2–1 lead in an eventual 3–1 victory over
South Africa. ==Career statistics==