Deschamps names 23-man France squad for Euro 2016

France Head Coach Didier Deschamps has announced his 23-man squad for this summer’s UEFA European Championships.

Mathieu Valbuena, the man at the centre of an incident involving Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema, is a notable omission by Deschamps along with Benzema himself.

Liverpool defender Mamadou Sakho was also omitted after being suspended for 30 days by UEFA for failing a drugs test. He tested positive for a fat burner after Liverpool's Europa League game against Manchester United in March and was given a provisional ban at the end of April.

Other surprise absentees from the squad include Morgan Schneiderlin of Manchester United, Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette and prolific Sevilla forward Kevin Gameiro.

West Ham’s Dimitri Payet and Leicester City’s title winner N’Golo Kante have been rewarded for their excellent club form this season with places in the French squad, however Nice attacker Hatem Ben Arfa misses out and must settle for a place among the stand-by players despite his strong form for the Ligue 1 team.

Paul Pogba, Antoine Griezmann, Blaise Matuidi and Raphael Varane have predictably been named by the French and the hosts will be expecting the quartet to spear their quest for European Championships glory.

Tottenham Hotspur ‘keeper Hugo Lloris will captain the French at the tournament and he is one of ten players named in the squad currently playing in England.

Arsenal teammates Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny join Manchester United starlet Anthony Martial, Newcastle United midfielder Moussa Sissoko and Crystal Palace’s Yohan Cabaye in being named in the squad, along with Lloris, Kante, Payet as well as Manchester City’s defensive duo of Bacary Sagna and Elaquim Mangala.

France open Euro 2016 against Romania on June 10 before also facing Albania and Switzerland in Group A. Before that they play friendly matches against Cameroon in Nantes on May 30 and Scotland in Metz on June 4.

The French Squad In Full:

Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Tottenham), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Benoit Costil (Rennes)

Defenders: Raphael Varane (Real Madrid), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Eliaquim Mangala (Manchester City), Jeremy Mathieu (Barcelona), Patrice Evra (Juventus), Bacary Sagna (Manchester City), Lucas Digne (Roma), Christophe Jallet (Lyon)

Midfielders: Paul Pogba (Juventus), Blaise Matuidi (Paris Saint-Germain), Lassana Diarra (Marseille), N'Golo Kante (Leicester City), Yohan Cabaye (Crystal Palace), Moussa Sissoko (Newcastle United)

Forwards: Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid), Dimitri Payet (West Ham United), Anthony Martial (Manchester United), Kingsley Coman (Bayern Munich), Olivier Giroud (Arsenal), Andre-Pierre Gignac (Tigres)

Standby: Alphonse Areola (Villarreal), Hatem Ben Arfa (Nice), Kevin Gameiro (Sevilla), Alexandre Lacazette (Lyon), Adrien Rabiot (Paris Saint-Germain), Morgan Schneiderlin (Manchester United), Djibril Sidibe (Lille), Samuel Umtiti (Lyon).