Gardiens de But
| Cédric CARRASSO | Girondins Bordeaux | |
| Hugo LLORIS | Olympique Lyonnais | |
| Stève MANDANDA | Olympique de Marseille |
Défenseurs
| Eric ABIDAL | F.C. Barcelone | |
| Aly CISSOKHO | Olympique Lyonnais | |
| Julien ESCUDE | FC Seville | |
| Patrice EVRA | Manchester United | |
| Rod FANNI | Stade Rennais | |
| William GALLAS | Arsenal F.C. | |
| Bakary SAGNA | Arsenal F.C. | |
| Sébastien SQUILLACI | F.C. Seville |
Milieux de terrain
| Abou DIABY | Arsenal F.C. | |
| Alou DIARRA | Girondins Bordeaux | |
| Lassana DIARRA | Real Madrid | |
| Yoann GOURCUFF | Girondins de Bordeaux | |
| Florent MALOUDA | Chelsea F.C. | |
| Moussa SISSOKO | Toulouse F.C. | |
| Jérémy TOULALAN | Olympique Lyonnais |
Attaquants
| Nicolas ANELKA | Chelsea F.C. | |
| Karim BENZEMA | Real Madrid | |
| André-Pierre GIGNAC | Toulouse F.C. | |
| Sidney GOVOU | Olympique Lyonnais | |
| Thierry HENRY | F.C. Barcelone | |
| Loïc REMY | OGC Nice |
There are really no major surprises with regards to who was included. Cissokho has been touted as the next French lateral defender to get his chance. With the injury to Clichy, clearly the door was
open for the Lyon player. I am sure it did not hurt that his club has been doing very well in the Champions League, giving the defender great exposure at a high level. Clearly the defender has had a fairy tale story - a few seasons ago he was in Ligue 2, got picked up by a 2nd tier club in Portugal only to find himself at FC Porto...and last season he was the target for Milan only to find himself at Olympique Lyonnaise where he is clearly establishing himself as on the the best lateral defenders in France. The latest rumor is that some of the big fish in England may be interested in securing his services. And now he has received a deserved call up to the French national side...quit an interesting few months.What is really glaring are the names that are missing.
Let us start with Vieira. Clearly Domenech is not convinced that the France captain is fit enough to include in his list. For once I am in agreement with the French manager. I am a huge Pat fan, as I had blogged about in the past he is the best holding midfielder France has ever had. However, he has become very injury prone, not something that easy to over come the way he plays either. At his best he was a true "box to box" midfielder, could level a bone crunching tackle, slot a surgical diagonal pass and score the crucial goal all in a days work. Many point to the Zizou head butt as what did France in during the 2006 World Cup finals...I say it was Vieira having to be substituted out due to a hamstring injury - this took out one of Frances PK shooters, forced Domenech to put in Diarra when I am sure he was not in the substitution plan and eliminated one of France's best players for the tournament. He was absolutely huge for Les Bleus during that run - scored the crucial goal against Togo and set up the second goal, scored the winner against Spain, and partnering with Makelele formed the defensive cover to allow Zizou to roam freely in the midfield.
Having said all that, I do believe his time with France has come to an end. It was a huge risk to take him to the Euros where he played 0 minutes. Domenech cannot and should not chance it during the home and away match up against Ireland. Will Pat be fit to play in South Africa if France make it...not sure. Maybe a full season with Inter will demonstrate how much more he has left in the tank. But I fear it will not be enough.
Another ommission is Mexes. Unlike Vieira, Mexes is at the height of his prowess. He appears to have been completely banished from Les B
leus...which I think is absolutely insane. I have little faith in Escude. I realize that the Sevilla defender had some poor luck against Romania, however I just do not see it when he has played for France. Yes he is good in the air...but so is Mexes. I realize he plays his club football with Squillaci so there is some understanding there, but right now neither he nor Mexes have had great showings for France recently. However the upside for the Roma player is much higher in my opinion. I think Mexes-Gallas is the central pairing that could and should work, but only if they are given the time to develop - in practice and during matches. Granted the next two games are not the time to experiment, but since I doubt that Escude will see the field for either match, why not have Mexes at Clairfontaine?Ribery is also absent. However since he is not 100% - probably out for another month. So clearly not an option. Gomis was left at home in favor of Remy. Not entirely surprising since the Nice striker might be a good option holding up the right channel, not something in Gomis' repetoire. No Nasri, again he has picked up full competition recently so probably not enough football in his legs to warrant a spot. No Boumsong...oh wait that is GREAT!
Without the Kaiser, the French formation almost sets itself - Henry should be on the left side (assuming he is 100% himself), allowing Gourcuff in the middle with either Gouvou/Anelka/Remy on the right. Benzema/Anelka at the point. Lass and Toulalan as the holding midfield. With the usual back line - Evra, Abidal, Gallas, Sagna. It will be interesting if reverting back to the 4-2-3-1 will slow down what appeared to be a more attacking minding French side with the 4-4-2...
6 comments:
France Missed Patric Viera in 2006 Fina??But Viera was guilty for Italys goal.Also he was Not a good Penalty Taker.
Thanks
Lekarlokin
Thanks, BTF, for your reasoned analysis.
But I have a bad feeling about the upcoming games, with a number of factors & intangibles breaking in Ireland's favour, not the least of which is Trapattoni who is probably far superior to Le monsieur in every manner of the game.
Shay Given probably needs to be significantly better/luckier than Hugo Lloris (or Steve Mandanda) ... which I can easily see happening.
As for the intangibles, I think Irish heart is going to count for something, especially when up against the malaise that has too often characterized the French side in recent years.
Also, there will be I think a large Irish presence in Paris, which coupled with poor home support will no doubt help the underdogs, too.
Obviously the French have a lot of individual talent, but perhaps not the collective strength that could allow a 'lesser' team like the Irish to prosper.
And is it true the French defense is on yellow cards?
I hope domenech keeps the formation he had in the last 2 games. Even if he doesint i feel confident France will go to the World Cup.
Very impressed with Cissokho. He's fast, has a great work ethic is physically intimidating.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6tOlv1GnoM
Too bad he's not a right midfielder. Doubt he'll see any action vs. Ireland...
I predict France will play an overly conservative style and eek it out 1-0 aggregate.
I would politely disagree, Lekarlokin, about Vieira in 2006. Yes he allow Materazzi to climb all over his back for the goal on the corner. However, Vieira was otherwise outstanding during the entire tournament. Also, look at his track record with Arsenal on PKs he was much better than you think. I am sure, had he been fit, he would have been one of the shooters.
Metamoralia, good points, I think the fact that all the UK nations travel very well will play a factor in the fixture at the Stade de France. I recall going to a France v England match in Montpellier prior to the 1998 world cup, you would have thought we were in the middle of Manchester! And during the qualifiers against Scotland, I recall watching the match and seeing all the Scottish banners and fans it was almost a home game for the Scots! That will be something that must be taken into account.
I too am not 100% confident heading into these matches.
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