Up To Date france

French coach Raymond Domenech on Monday opted to stick to his squad of 23 players for the World Cup in South Africa next month and not to get a replacement for Lassana Diarra after the star midfielder pulled out because of illness.

Domenech stated on the website of the French Football Federation (FFF) that he is confident that his 23-man squad will perform well in the month-long tournament, scheduled on 11 June-11 July.

“We though about it (calling up a replacement for Diarra) for a long time”, explained the French coach, who initially had 24 players in the camp until the midfielder fell ill. “However, we are placing our confidence in the 23 players here at Tignes, who are really hungry to go to the World Cup finals, and show us that every day”.

Diarra was ruled out from the finals last Saturday after he was diagnosed to have an intestinal disease. The midfielder left Portsmouth for Real Madrid in January last year, having played previously for Arsenal and Chelsea.

With Jeremy Toulalan of Lyon, he formed Domenech’s first choice defensive midfield pair. Diarra played in 10 of the 12 matches of France during their qualification campaign for the 2010 World Cup.

Abou Diaby of Arsenal played in his position during the squad’s training session last Saturday afternoon.

France’s Les Bleus will begin their campaign in the World Cup against Uruguay on 11 June in Cape Town.

World Cup winner Laurent Blanc will quit his post as Bordeaux’s coach and become France’s manager after the World Cup this summer, replacing current boss Raymond Domenech.

The 44-year-old former defender of Manchester United led Bordeaux during last year’s League and Cup Double. However, his team finished the season with no trophy. He was included in the French team that prevailed in the 1998 World Cup as well as the Euro 2000.

France’s federation is anticipated to formally confirm Blanc as the successor of Domenech on Thursday.

“Girondons Bordeaux have been informed by Laurent Blanc that he wanted to answer favourably to the French federation (FFF)’s solicitation to become the France coach”, said Bordeaux in a statement. “Girondins Bordeaux expect to hear from the FFF on the question of the compensation linked to the release of their coach”.

Blanc had been successful in his career as the centre-back of Marseille, Inter Milan, and Barcelona. However, after his success as Bordeaux’s manager in 2009, his team only finished sixth this season and was eliminated from the Champions League during the quarterfinals by Lyon.

Domenech also suffered the frustrations of the fans, after a disappointing campaign in the Euro 2008 where the French squad only gained one point and finished at the bottom of the group.

Yet the French manager said that he had not been informed yet whether Blanc will replace him after next month’s World Cup in South Africa.

“I’m not the one who decides on this”, Domenech said. “Blanc proved he was able to be in charge at club level. But coaching a national team is a different job. He will have to be ready immediately because the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign starts in September”.

France will begin their campaign in the World Cup on 11 June against Uruguay.

Two months before the World Cup starts, the French football team is hit with sex scandal issues involving several of its players and minor prostitutes.

There has been a build-up of outrage over the past week regarding reports that three players are being investigated by the police regarding the scandal. There are concerns that these players will be dropped from the World Cup squad. The actual announcement of names will be in May.

Karim Benzema, 22; Sidney Govou, 30; and Franck Ribéry, 27, are the three players accused of having paid for sex with an under-age prostitute. However, charges have yet to be filed against them. The scandal involves Zahia Dehar, an 18-year-old prostitute who said she had relations with two of the involved players when she was still a minor.

As with the case of NFL’s Ben Roethlisberger, who allegedly sexually assaulted a 20-year-old woman but was not charged, fans questioned whether he is too comprised to play for the team.

Dehar said during the investigation that she had revealed her real age when she met the players – she was still 16 when she had sex with Benzema and 17 when she had a relationship with Ribéry. Govou’s part in the scandal in unclear, but the prostitute said she was 18 when they met.

Prostitution is legal in France; however, soliciting is not. Clients can be sentenced to three years of imprisonment and fined up to $60,300 for soliciting sex with a minor prostitute.

Although the players have denied any wrongdoing, it still leaves a mark in the reputation of the team.