French play-off squad announced
Credit:
French coach Raymond Domenech has this afternoon announced his squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifying play-offs against the Republic of Ireland on November 14th and 18th.
Arsenal's Gael Clichy and Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery are both ruled out through injury. French club football is in buoyant form at the moment as Lyon booked their place in the last 16 of the Champions League on Wednesday night, while both Marseille and Bordeaux also look well placed to progress. These clubs provide nine of the 24-man squad.
The main debate leading up to the announcement was whether the vast experience of Inter Milan's Patrick Vieira would be included, but he has missed out, with Domenech opting for Real Madrid's Lassana Diarra, Bordeaux's Alou Diarra (no relation), and Arsenal's Abou Diary as defensive midfield options to use in his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation. Lyon's Aly Cissokho has been called up for the first time, while his team-mate Batéfimbi Gomis misses out after being involved in the squad for France's final two group games.
The full squad list is as follows:
Goalkeepers:
Hugo Lloris (Lyon)
Steve Mandanda (Marseille)
Cedric Carraso (Bordeaux)
Defenders:
William Gallas (Arsenal)
Patrice Evra (Manchester United)
Bacary Sagna (Arsenal)
Julien Escudé (Sevilla)
Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla)
Eric Abidal (Barcelona)
Rod Fanni (Rennes)
Aly Cissokho (Lyon)
Midfielders:
Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid)
Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux)
Jérémy Toulalan (Lyon)
Florent Malouda (Chelsea)
Alou Diarra (Bordeaux)
Abou Diary (Arsenal)
Moussa Sissoko (Bordeaux)
Forwards:
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Thierry Henry (Barcelona)
Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea)
Sydney Govou (Lyon)
André-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse)
Loic Rémy (Nice)
Arsenal's Gael Clichy and Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery are both ruled out through injury. French club football is in buoyant form at the moment as Lyon booked their place in the last 16 of the Champions League on Wednesday night, while both Marseille and Bordeaux also look well placed to progress. These clubs provide nine of the 24-man squad.
The main debate leading up to the announcement was whether the vast experience of Inter Milan's Patrick Vieira would be included, but he has missed out, with Domenech opting for Real Madrid's Lassana Diarra, Bordeaux's Alou Diarra (no relation), and Arsenal's Abou Diary as defensive midfield options to use in his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation. Lyon's Aly Cissokho has been called up for the first time, while his team-mate Batéfimbi Gomis misses out after being involved in the squad for France's final two group games.
The full squad list is as follows:
Goalkeepers:
Hugo Lloris (Lyon)
Steve Mandanda (Marseille)
Cedric Carraso (Bordeaux)
Defenders:
William Gallas (Arsenal)
Patrice Evra (Manchester United)
Bacary Sagna (Arsenal)
Julien Escudé (Sevilla)
Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla)
Eric Abidal (Barcelona)
Rod Fanni (Rennes)
Aly Cissokho (Lyon)
Midfielders:
Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid)
Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux)
Jérémy Toulalan (Lyon)
Florent Malouda (Chelsea)
Alou Diarra (Bordeaux)
Abou Diary (Arsenal)
Moussa Sissoko (Bordeaux)
Forwards:
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Thierry Henry (Barcelona)
Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea)
Sydney Govou (Lyon)
André-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse)
Loic Rémy (Nice)
About Alan Dooley
is one of Extratime's longest serving contributors. Based in County Galway, Alan has been following the League of Ireland since the mid-1980s. His first memory of the drama of domestic football was Vinny Arkins, then … View Full Profile