For the past few months if you have checked the FFF’s website you probably saw this one their calendar:

Mardi 29 mars 2011
Match amical
France-adversaire à désigner (TBA)

Today I was checking the Fifa website and they announced that France will be actually playing Mexico on the 29th of March.

How do you guys feel about this? I for one am excited. Here is the 2011 schedule:

February 9 – Brazil (H) Friendly
March 25 – Luxembourg (A) Euro 2012 Qualifier
March 29 – Mexico (H) Friendly
June 3 – Belarus (A) Euro 2012 Qualifier
June 7 – Ukraine (A) Friendly
September 2 – Albania (A) Euro 2012 Qualifier
September 6 – Romania (A) Euro 2012 Qualifier
October 7 – Albania (H) Euro 2012 Qualifier
October 11 – Bosnia (H) Euro 2012 Qualifier

I think that France can win all of these matches. Brazil and Mexico will be a great test for us.

Alou Diarra was one of the 11 World Cup players to make Blanc’s first Euro qualification squad.  Will Blanc trust him to captain the national team like he trusted him to lead Bordeaux?

Blanc chose a squad of 21 players to face Belarus and Bosnia in France’s first qualification matches for Euro 2012.  In the lead-up to the announcement, he made a few interesting comments that gives us a few hints on his thoughts and potential starting XI.

Blanc’s Bleus

Players who were present at the 2010 World Cup are italicized.

Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux)

DEFENDERS: Bacary Sagna (Arsenal / ENG), Adil Rami (Lille), Philippe Mexes (AS Roma / ITA), Sakho (Paris-SG), Benedict Trémoulinas (Bordeaux), Gael Clichy (Arsenal / ENG)

MEDIA: Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille), Jeremy Menez (AS Rome / ITA), Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid / ESP), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Yann M’Vila (Rennes), Florent Malouda (Chelsea / ENG), Abu Diaby (Arsenal / ENG)

FORWARDS: Kevin Gameiro (Lorient), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid / ESP), Loïc Remy (Marseille), Louis Saha (Everton / ENG), Guillaume Hoarau (Paris SG).

Make sure to check-out Jean-François’s post yesterday on the Bosnia and Belarus squads we will be facing!

The final score of Blanc’s first match as coach: Norway 2-1 France. Did the scoreline reflect the match? Partially, the inexperienced French side conceded two goals that really should not have been. The first goal we conceded was not as inexcusable as the latter, Erik Huseklepp took a shot on Ruffier. Ruffier’s positioning was correct, but he completely botched the save and the ball bounced off him into the net. Ruffier was exceptional until that moment, he is a good goalkeeper, not a great goalkeeper. I believe that this may be have been his first and last match for France. The second goal, was a mistake I would have excused for one of the new players, but not from the most experienced player on the squad. Lassana Diarra was a second half sub, he was put in to experiment the 4-2-3-1 formation. Shortly after his arrival, he literally gave the ball to Erik Huseklepp in an extremely vulnerable position. This put Erik Huseklepp in a 1v1 situation with the goalkeeper, and Erik made no mistake.

Now for the goal France scored. Hatem Ben-Arfa is probably the most criticized french player in the world. He is always smeared for his lack of passing and his immaturity. What better comeback is a beautiful 25M goal? It was, in my opinion, the best French goal in some time. I don’t think anyone was happier than my fellow blogger Sarah.

It was a pleasant sight to see a squad Blanc described as “children on Christmas”. I feel like these guys represent France, unlike their counterparts. I almost would rather lose with these fellows, than win with the jocks. Some of these young players MUST stay.

This match was all or nothing for everyone who took part. Who should stay?

M’vila – Probably the most surprising performer. The 20 year old did a whole lot better than his competition (Lassana Diarra). The holding midfield position is really gaining a lot of depth.

The “87 Generation” – Nasri, Ben-Arfa, Menez, & Benzema all on the field simultaneously. Many have anticipated this for years, and they were not unsatisfied. ALL of these players should be included in Euro 2012 qualifying.

Mexes, Rami, and Cissokho – Only because ANYONE is better than Gallas, Abidal, and Evra at this point.

Finally, here is the serious problem we face. There are 0 friendlies between now and the qualifiers. That means no further experimenting can be done. Blanc has some huge decisions to make. How will he combine the new squads? If you were Blanc, who would you start against Belarus on September 3rd?

P.S. – Please fell free to follow me on twitter. On there I post smaller news updates, I can also answer any questions you have on there.

August is already here and it’s time for Blanc to put his cards on the table. More importantly, its time for Les Bleus to prove to us that they’re worthy of wearing the French colors.

Personally I think that the only way we can get past this fiasco is by winning games. As most of you know, Blanc requested that the FFF drop all 23 Mondialists from the World Cup for this match. The replacement squad that Blanc called up is very inexperienced. Of the 22 men, 13 have never received a cap. A few of these players were only called up to fill the roster. Although there are a few names on this list that many are happy to see. Samir Nasri and Phillipe Mexes are two players that Domenech shunned wrongfully, and they deserve this chance. Some, including Christian Gourcuff, have already criticized Blanc over the exclusion of Laurent Koscielny, however I feel it’s best, as he needs to adapt to his new club first. Also, there are no players from the U19 squad who just became European Champions, Blanc said it is because of their lack of club experience.

It’s been a long time since we faced Norway. The last time we played them was in 1998, and they proved to be a tough opponent. In fact, during that match, French coach Laurent Blanc scored a goal. His goal was soon dwarfed by what may have been Zizou’s finest goal in his French Career. The final score was 3-3. France’s overall record with Norway is 6-4-4.

Based on what I could find by doing some simple research, it seems like Carew will be playing up front for Norway. Their most experienced players are John Arne Risse(DF), John Carew(ST), and Steffen Iversen (ST) each having about 80 caps. Carew is their current highest goal scorer with 22 goals in 82 matches. That doesn’t seem like that many until you notice that it is more goals than this whole French squad has combined. If you know anything about the Norwegians please let me know. I really hope they’re strong on their right side so they’ll have to face Trémoulinas or Cissokho.

I think that Norway is a formidable opponent for this young squad. It seems like they are one of many European sides that are growing stronger. Their recent form is WWWDW. Their FIFA Ranking is 22. I do not know how much experimenting this side will do against Les Bleus. They also have 2012 Qualifying ahead of them, but I think that we will see their usual XI/Formation. Which means we will be facing an experienced Norwegian side.

Over the past few weeks the two formations that have been linked the most with l’Equipe de France are the 4-2-3-1 and the 4-1-3-2. I hope to see Blanc use both of these, perhaps using one each half. Rumor has it (based on training) that this will be the starting XI: Ruffier, Fanni, Rami, Mexès, Cissokho, MVila, L.Diarra, M.Sissoko, N’Zogbia, Nasri, Hoarau.

I’ve only heard the names, but not the specific formation. The surprise exclusion in this would be Karim Benzema. Some might be upset/thrilled not to see Ben-Arfa.

My predictions? I think that these young players will be eager to show their stuff to Laurent Blanc. We should expect about 5 or 6 substitutions. There will be moments of brilliance and there will also be a few severe blunders. However, I have faith that this squad can squeeze a victory over the Norwegians. A 2-1 Triumph over Norway.

That’s all I have to say, now it’s your turn. What are your predictions? Starting XI? Expectations? Please let us know by commenting below.

P.S. – We may do a liveblog during this match. If you are interested please let us know.

P.S.S. – The match should be on TF1 in France. However I do not think it will be available in the United States. I have heard it will be available on ESPN 3. If your ISP isn’t subscribed to ESPN 3 you will have to find an online stream.

The 87 generation is back on top…can they rediscover their winning ways?

Well, we’ve wondered, debated and made a million recommendations of which 23 players should be included in this very important selection.  I say “very important” because being Blanc’s first selection it will set the tone for his reign.  it is imperative that this group of players demonstrate their ability to provide competition to the 23 players left out of the squad (and thus place a much needed fire under their ass) AND because the world will be watching how we can recover from that whole World Cup mess.

And after all that debating, rumors and partial lists – the day has finally come!  Here is Blanc’s first selection for Les Bleus!

KEEPERS: Stephane Ruffier (Monaco), Nicolas Douchez (Rennes)

DEFENDERS: Rod Fanni (Rennes), Adil Rami (Lille), Philippe Mexes (AS Roma), Sakho (Paris SG), Benedict Trémoulinas (Bordeaux), Aly Cissokho (Lyon), Mathieu Debuchy (Lille).

MIDFIELD: Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid), Moussa Sissoko (Toulouse), Yann M’Vila (Rennes), Samir Nasri (Arsenal ), Yohan Cabaye (Lille), Charles N’Zogbia (Wigan), Blaise Matuidi (Saint Etienne).

STRIKERS: Hatem Ben Arfa (Marseille), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Loïc Remy (Nice), Jimmy Briand (Lyon), Jeremy Menez (AS Rome), Guillaume Hoarau (Paris SG).

INITIAL THOUGHTS
I don’t want to give away too much yet since i’ll be discussing this (with Dave Trotter and Martin Michelot) on Ligue 1 Talk’s podcast tomorrow.  But, I will say its amazing to see the 87 generation back on top (hope they don’t screw it up!), Blanc clearly wasn’t ready to give any favors to his old Bordeaux players and the pro-Frey/Pro-Trezeguet lobby will (I’m sure) have a lot to say…

With the events over the past few days, its easy to feel like the Bleus have turned their back on the fans

*Post written to the tune of Everybody Hurts by REM…audio at bottom of post (below the jump)*

Please note: The timeline of events has been updated thanks to additions and clarifications made in the comments section of the post. Credit to Justin, Sandrahn and Jennifer!

I’ve been a fan of the Bleus since 1998, ever since the team’s glorious World Cup win in Paris – I became a passionate fan of the Bleus after their infamous first round exit in the 2002 World Cup.  But, the feeling of losing so miserably after such joyous feelings and high expectations upset me, and formed my desire to follow the team until the day they would avenge the past and win the World Cup again.  With each year I’ve become more enthralled with the Bleus- and though I joined the France-mania in 1998, I’m hardly a fair weather fan who jumped on the bandwagon.  Since 2002,I can count the number of games I’ve missed on one hand.  At times, it’s even mysterious to me how I have developed such a strong connection with Les Bleus.   There have been a lot of times when I could have abandoned the team because the Bleus are not always an easy team to love.  Growing up in Texas (the founder of freedom fries), it was hardly a passion that was encouraged and I’m pretty sure I was the only one on the France bandwagon.  Even outside of those cultural issues, both the French Football Federation’s as well as the team’s performances and behavior the past decade have alienated even their most ardent supporters.  In 2006, France fans were given a brief reprieve when they managed to string together 3 magnificent performances in a row (Spain, Brazil, Portugal) to make it to the finals of the 2006 World Cup in Germany.  For reasons we all know, we did not win that Cup.  And it is clear that without a miracle, we will not win it this year either.  And it breaks my heart.  Really.

There are differences in fans’ dedication levels. Bandwagon or fair-weather fans will get excited and follow teams only when they’re playing well or during big competitions such as the World Cup.  But hardcore fans get very connected emotionally and dedicate themselves to the team every year, despite its record. These people experience powerful emotions from watching the team and support them through the ecstasy of winning and the agony of defeat.  These are the types of fans which seemingly live and die with their favorite teams and athletes.  In any match, scenes of one fan throwing back their head in desperation are juxtaposed against the opposition’s supporters jumping up and down in jubilation.  While the Mexican fans broke our their sombreros and tequila (before you accuse me of breaking out an ethnic stereotype, some of them actually did that), France fans experienced a barrage of emotions:  sadness that their team was most likely going home in the first round, anger that the players didn’t seem to care, confusion over why a team of talented players could create neither a credible offense or defense and frustration that had the FFF made changes in 2008, this could have been avoided.

That bond is a two-edged sword. A win by your favorite team can pick you up, but a loss is demoralizing (to say the least). Beyond losses, fans can feel a personal connection to players, which is why when even “off the field” scandals like Frank Ribery’s occur, fans can feel betrayed.  There’s a lot in my relationship with the Bleus that I’m not proud of. I’ve cancelled lunches and dates at the movies because a game was on. My temper has snapped like a twig more than a few times and I’ve yelled at everyone in the room when the pundit misrepresented or distorted game or a player, or when one of my friends had the audacity to chat during a game.  Of course if we won, it’s shots for everybody…

As a France fan, I’ve experienced many great and unforgettable moments. But as Bleus supporters know too well, there have been too many moments when they find a way to break your heart.  When I saw Fabio Cannavaro and the rest of the Italian team raise the Cup  in 2006 and heard the celebration from the Spanish fans in 2008, it was gut-wrenching.  But neither of those can compare to what I have felt since the game against Mexico on Friday.

Since then, the shit has really hit the fan and I have felt more like I was watching a soap opera unfold rather than a team of world-class professionals participate in one of the biggest events in their career.  While it was clear going into this tournament that all was not well, I never would have imagined that things would spiral out of of control this quickly.  We all knew Domenech was not the right man to lead the Bleus for this tournament – that was abundantly clear in 2008.  But, for reasons they have yet to explain, the FFF declared he was the appropriate man for South Africa.  Since then, the atmosphere surrounding a team has resembled a country about to break into civil war.  The FFF were pitted against both the public and the their famous alumni who repeatedly (every chance they got) denounced the FFF and Domenech.  For most of the two years, Domenech has taken a majority of the hits and criticism.  And while he is certainly not blameless by any means, surely we can all agree that there is enough blame to go around.  But the lack of transparency and the team’s insistence of shrouding everything in secrecy has made it difficult to determine how to assign the blame.  Instead, we are left to put the pieces together by a dramatic press corps who seem more interested in selling papers than writing the truth, a team of players whose oversized egos result in them constantly deflecting and blaming everyone else, Domenech who is clearly clueless and has no clue what is going on and how to fix it as well as the Federation who appear willing to do almost anything to salvage their reputation.  And yet none of these people appear willing to take any responsibility for the position we are in now.  And what position is that, you ask?  Let’s just summarize the events of the last few days…