Preview is available to read here.

The FFF have been starting a new trend recently, and that is to play a lot home games outside of Paris. I personally find it very interesting because there is a lot more to France other than Paris. A few years ago Martinique hosted it’s first French game against Costa Rica in Fort de France. I understand that this game is on Reunion only because its close to South Africa. However, we just played in Lens a week ago.

In other News:

The game against Tunisian Olympic team originally planned for yesterday was canceled because of lack of available French Players.

Still no more news about William Gallas’ health scare. Maybe no news is good news?

REMINDER: Liveblog begins 10 min before match is due to start!

Today the Bleus take on Tunisia in their second friendly before the World Cup.  Their first game against Costa Rica was largely a success last week, and the team will be hoping to establish a positive streak of games going into the tournament this summer.  If you missed the Costa Rica game, check out Jean-Francois’ post-game review and player ratings and (as Jeff mentioned in the comments section) you can watch the replay on ESPN360.  The more entertaining, offensive style displayed at times by France against Costa Rica was a breath of fresh air- I will admit, I’m anxious to see if the team can now play this well consistently, instead of just flashes of greatness.

And while games against former French colonies tend to breed enormous tension and can (at times) become hostile environments for the team- this one is expected to go peacefully.  In fact, given the reception they received when they arrived in Tunisia, the France players can expect to receive a rather warm welcome from the home crowd (see picture below the jump).  

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MATCH BACKGROUND

RAYMOND DOMENECH MAKES HISTORY

Some of you may know, if you read my post on the front page yesterday on Domenech’s legacy, that tomorrow’s match marks Raymond Domenech’s 75th match in charge of Les Bleus since he was hired by the FFF in 2004, equalling the record set by the much revered Michel Hildalgo.  Meaning, that post-Sunday, when Domenech surpasses the record, he will have secured a place in France’s footballing history- though, how we reflect on his reign is still a question mark.  For more on this debate, I suggest checking out my original post…

THE CAPTAIN ISSUE

Well, remember a while ago when I proposed a debate over the French captaincy should Henry not be available to serve as captain during the World Cup this summer?  Well, that’s not exactly the situation we are in- Henry is technically “available” though for obvious reason, he isn’t the most preferred option for France’s starting XI.  Well, according to the Daily Mail (I know, the source makes these allegations automatically questionable), Domenech’s choice over who will wear the armband during Henry’s absence has caused a bit of a storm in the France camp….

In the game versus Costa Rica, when Henry was replaced by Sydney Govou in the starting XI, Manchester United’s Patrice Evra wore the France armband.  Allegedly (and again, consider the source), William Gallas took exception to this decision.  Now, don’t get me wrong- I admire a lot of things about Gallas.  The guy has so much fire and passion.  Unfortunately, even at his old age, he hasn’t figured out how to channel and/or communicate this passion to his teammates in a way that motivates them.  I think it should be obvious why Domenech didn’t choose Gallas for captain.  For starters, the guy has been a question mark and we didn’t even know if he was healthy enough to be included in the team until a few days ago.  Second, I think the Arsenal experiment proves that he is better as an informal leader- there clearly needs to be someone on the team to reign in Gallas when he inevitably crosses the line.  I think the reports over Gallas’ relationship with several of his Arsenal teammates prove that he hasn’t completely learned his lesson after he had his armband taken away by Wenger.  So, given these obvious reasons why Gallas shouldn’t be captain- I’m shocked over his sense of entitlement to the title.  For me, this is basically another reason why he wouldn’t be the best choice for the role.  Leaders need to have confidence and a winning mentality- but they also need some humility.  So, while I’m glad to have Gallas’ experience, fire and passion leading our backline this summer- I fully support Domenech’s decision to maintain his leadership role as an informal one and I actually doubt the validity of the story.   When stories about the French team start in the English press- without any mention in the French press- it automatically raises a red flag.

Given the other players on the team, I think Patrice Evra was the natural choice.  I adore Jeremy Toulalan when playing for France- but even he has admitted that he isn’t vocal enough to command the respect needed to boss around the huge personalities on the team.  Ribery has been passed around in the press as a possible replacement to Henry.  I can’t think of a worse idea.  The guy is talented and despite my personal dislike of him, I’m glad he’s on the team.  That said, I don’t think there is a bone in his body that screams leadership potential.  Anelka is another example of this same conundrum- talented, skilled player who just isn’t a natural emotional leader.  Ribery and Anelka lead the team’s tactics and offensive strategy- but I question if they have what it takes to emotionally pick the team up and carry them on their backs.

PLAYERS TO DOMENECH:  DON’T MAKE US A SLAVE TO THE SYSTEM

As I mentioned before, there was a remarkable difference in the way France played against Costa Rica as compared to their outings in the World Cup qualification campaign and recent friendly against Spain.  In the recent player interviews, several of the players were outspoken on their preference for the 4-3-3 formation Domenech deployed against Costa Rica.

“There was an improvement in the way we played. There was a lot more movement around the ball carrier, which wasn’t the case in the last few games, and we were able to find a lot of space,” France midfielder Yoann Gourcuff said. “We spoke to each other a lot, you have to keep talking when you only have three in midfield.”

“We felt free, we didn’t feel like we were prisoners to a system,” Malouda said after the Costa Rica game.

So even though I’m sad to see Lass leave in the manner that he did- with (reportedly) a rare genetic blood disease- I think there is a silver lining, at least for the team, since it has forced Domenech to give up on his preference for two holding midfielders.

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THE OPPOSITION:  TUNISIA

Tunisia come into this match after a a year of disappointments.  Tunisia are, undoubtedly, a team of talented individuals.  But, they have struggled to accurately display that talent as they crashed out of World Cup qualification as well as the African Cup of Nations in January.  The Tunisian Federation has been in a bit of a tailspin the last few months and are currently searching for coach- further proof of the complete disarray of the team is the fact that Domenech was being touted (by credible sources) as the next Tunisian coach.  Tunisia is probably the team I support the most behind France and the US – so you can imagine my joy at the idea of having to deal with Rayray for a another few years.  Until recently, when this story started to look less likely, I was convinced I was cursed.

But despite the chaos, Tunisia will definitely show up with extra motivation to win this match, even referring to this game as “their World Cup.”  Interestingly Ligue 1 Talk is reporting that the Tunisian players have announced that there won’t be any unnecessarily rough tackles in the game today, recognizing what is at stake for the French players.  There is no doubt that they have the players to win this gam; remember, they started the goal scoring first the last time we played.  Yassine Chikhaoui will make his return to the squad after struggling for almost two years with a knee injury.  While he probably won’t start, it seems like he is likely to make it on to the field at some point during the game.

For more details on the Tunisian team and a video of the last time France and Tunisia met in Paris check out the Tunisian World Cup Blog (highly recommended).

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TEAM UPDATES:  FRANCE

Luckily, France didn’t sustain any injuries in their Costa Rica match and although there was a scare with a Gallas/Cisse tackle earlier in the preparation, everyone seems to have been careful since then.  While the team hasn’t sustained any new injuries, the number of baby bleus is multiplying quickly.  A week ago, Florent Malouda left the team’s camp to be by his wife during labor for baby #4.  A few days ago, Alou Diarra’s wife also went into labor and I’m unsure if he has returned back to the squad in time to be present in today’s match.  Congrats to both families!

Regarding today’s lineup, it has been suggested that Domenech will stick with some of his changes that worked in the last game against Costa Rica.  Those changes include leaving Henry on the bench (initially), giving Ribery the role he wants on the left and letting Anelka lead the attacking line-up as the center forward.  Is it just me or has Domenech been making some great, rational coaching decision lately?  Keep it up Rayray (just not in the future with France, the US or Tunisia)!  Some of the changes that didn’t work are also likely to be remedied, including replacing Mandanda with Lloris in the goal.  As you all know, I love Steve and have tremendous respect for his ability and talent.  But, he did not display what he is capable of during the Costa Rica game and (in my opinion) wasted a chance to give Lloris some serious competition.  The good thing is that France is very fortunate to be deep in the goalkeeper position.  I expect Lloris to start today.

Expected Starting XI (4-3-3): Lloris; Sagna, Abidal, Gallas, Evra; Toulalan, Malouda, Gourcuff; Govou, Anelka, Ribery

Valbuena played well against Costa Rica, but one performance does not make a starter.  Part of what makes him an incredible asset for France is his amazing speed- which is a deadly weapon to throw on the field once the other team has begun to tire.  I expect him and Diaby to make an appearance in the second half and will be looking forward to them showing everyone their performances against Costa Rica weren’t just beginner’s luck.  I really loved the pictures that came out with the team hugging the leprechaun after his goal (below).  I felt like the players were not just happy to have scored a winning goal, but they were happy FOR Valbuena to have scored the goal.  After a few years of sulking and moodiness, its a nice change….Abidal recently commented that the team dynamic is much improved from 2008 because “no one is here to..kill the atmosphere” (Credit, again, to Ligue 1 Talk).

This afternoon, France will play in their game since they qualified for the World Cup in that controversial game against Ireland. For their first game to prepare for South Africa, France will see how they measure up to the reigning European champions and (one of the) favorites to win the tournament this summer.

THE BACKSTORY

As if this challenge wasn’t exciting (a maybe a bit intimidating) enough- but they will be doing it with a few new faces in the line-up and on the bench. Several of Les Bleus regular call-ups are sidelined with injuries (but all plan to be available this summer) so France will be taking this test without Benzema, Gignac, Gallas, Abidal, Diarra (Alou), Squillaci and Diaby. These absences have given several new players the opportunity to demonstrate their ability and desire to represent France this summer. Though it is frightening to play the best without our biggest “guns”- I think this may turn out to be the best thing that has ever happened to the team (if it doesn’t go horribly wrong). Hopefully it will be the kick in the ass the team needs to let everyone know that if they aren’t giving their best on the field then they are replaceable. For more on the new players who were called up- please see this post.

More importantly, this is the start of a new clean slate in a lot of ways. Obviously, there will still be some residual tension from the fans at this game about the team’s performance during qualification. The Parisian fans are not known for their restraint and enduring support when they feel that the team is not providing an exceptionally entertaining performance. And to be fair, a lot of times they were right. The losses, draws and narrow wins against easy teams such as Austria (lost 3-1), Romania (draws 2-2 and 1-1), Faroe Islands (won..but only 1-0) were not only disgraceful results but disappointing games to watch (very boring..). But, now that part is over- and Les Bleus can come into this game without the pressure of qualification and just see how they are able to perform against a team who is at their peak.

THE OPPOSITION: SPAIN

If France’s qualification for the World Cup was a long hard road then Spain’s was paved with gold. Since the qualification for Euro 2008, Spain has been producing breathtaking results while also producing positive results. In 44 games, they have only had three draws and a single loss- meaning they have won over 90% of their matches since 2007. To give you some perspective on the gap in efficiency between France and Spain- France is averaging just over 50% in the same time frame.

This gap is a relatively new phenomenon- when looking at their matches historically the two teams are pretty evenly matched. In the 29 games the two teams have played, Spain have won 12 and France have won 11. Until 2008, Spain had yet to demonstrate their ability to really perform well at big tournaments. France’s 1998 World Cup glory and 2000 European Championship dwarfed the Spanish achievements. In 2006, France’s game against Spain in the World Cup round of 16 was the first sign that France could still be the team and produce the type of football that won the World Cup and European Championship. Previous to that game, the situation really didn’t look all that different to the situation we are in now. The Spaniards breezed through their qualification group and scored a lot of goals- they were younger, faster and ambitious. France were a team that barely qualified for the elimination rounds and everyone doubted them.

Another (potentially) positive thing about Spain is their playing style and size. They play with a bunch of quick, short passes and the team is made up of a lot of short, slight players. This is not a team that will rough us up or kick us out of the game. If anything, this might be a game where we are the more physically dominant players (FINALLY!). Since we’ve played a bunch of physical Eastern European or Irish teams in most of our qualification we have largely been the recipient of most of the physical abuse. Let’s just say that ariel threats are the least of our concerns with this team (especially with Torres on the bench though Ramos is quite good at headers).

TEAM NEWS & STARTING XI

France: Based on the way Les Bleus have been practicing at Clairefontaine the past couple of days, we may see some new players in positions that aren’t open due to injury. Evra, Gourcuff and Anelka have been practicing with the “B” team and Ciani, Ribery and Cisse have been promoted to the starting 11 team. For more information and pictures on what the team has been up to at Clairefontaine (sponsorship photoshoots, walking around the park, footy tennis and more!) the past few days, check out my Twitter updates at OffsideSarah.

France Starting XI (4-4-2): Lloris; Sagna, Ciani, Escude, Cissokho; L. Diarra, Toulalan, Ribéry, Malouda; Henry, Cisse

Spain: Del Bosque has already named his starting XI and Torres and Fabregas are starting on the bench. Unlike France, Spain aren’t having many injury problems and many of their players are in good form at their clubs.

Spain Starting XI (4-5-1): Casillas; Ramos, Puyol, Pique, Arbeloa; Silva, Xavi, Xabi Alonso, Busquets, Iniesta; Villa

PREDICTION

Do I expect the same renaissance to happen during this game that occurred in 2006? No, I’m idealistic but not in denial. This Spanish team is wiser and more confident than the 2006 Spanish team. They will also want to avenge themselves of that loss. And we don’t have the wisdom and magical players we had then (Zizou, Vieria, Makelele, Thuram.. I could go on and on). But, despite the difference in recent results, I think France are capable of beating this dominant Spain team and any other team in the World. And I think getting some new blood in the team is a positive step in finding the right formula of players to make this team effective, efficient and fun to watch. I actually don’t care if we win or lose. The most important thing is for Domenech to give as many players as possible a chance to play today to evaluate what they could bring to the table this summer. I’d much rather lose today and learn something that could help us win more later. I just hope the Parisian fans can restrain their need for short-term gratification..

Because of all the new players in the team, it is hard to make a prediction- but I’m going to be bold and predict a 2-1 win for France.

BONUS: This doesn’t have anything to do with France- but it is just too funny to not share. Check out Benzema getting some special treatment at Real Madrid- I can see why he is weary to leave!