PARIS — Uncapped Mathieu Valbuena and Marc Planus were retained by France coach Raymond Domenech when he trimmed his provisional World Cup squad from 30 to 24 players yesterday. Forward Valbuena was rewarded for helping Olympique Marseille win the Ligue 1 title and Girondins defender Planus will provide cover for central defender William Gallas who is still struggling with a calf injury. Domenech, who has until June 1 to name his official 23-man squad, is still hoping Gallas will be able to take part in the June 11-July 11 finals in South Africa.
The France coach dropped goalkeeper Mickael Landreau, defenders Rod Fanni and Adil Rami, midfielder Yann M'Vila and forwards Hatem Ben Arfa and Jimmy Briand. Nobody will be too surprised with his decisions but some may argue that the gifted but erratic Ben Arfa deserved to make the trip. Patrick Vieira and striker Karim Benzema were the two most notable absentees from the original list.
Provisional squad: Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda, Cedric Carrasso; Defenders: Bacary Sagna, Patrice Evra, William Gallas, Eric Abidal, Sebastien Squillaci, Marc Planus , Gael Clichy, Anthony Reveillere; Midfielders: Lassana Diarra, Alou Diarra, Jeremy Toulalan, Florent Malouda, Yoann Gourcuff, Abou Diaby; Forwards: Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka, Andre-Pierre Gignac, Franck Ribery, Sidney Govou, Djibril Cisse, Mathieu Valbuena. — AFP
