France Foto: Florent and Florencia Malouda

You have to admit that their first names make you pause.

Anyway, Malouda was really tight with the Brazilian crew when he was at Lyon, later I found out it was because his wife was close friends with the wives of Juninho and Cris.

Yes, Laurie, he didn’t exactly shine yesterday.
Maybe he feels more comfortable within the scheme of les Bleus? I sure hope so. He had a good thing going with Abidal. Who would you see instead of him as replacement? Could Govou fit in?

I hate to stray off topic but the FFF website released videos of today’s first practice @ Clairefontaine. I couldn’t help but have flashbacks of the classic “Yeux Dans Les Bleus” movie that came out after the ‘98 cup.

http://www.fff.fr/euro2008/actualite/actubleus_euro2008/videos_euro2008/442995.shtml

there is something wrong with your heart.)

Doume,
Didn’t mean to double post. I just noticed I linked the same video. My bad.

Jean-Michel, one can never have too many links to videos of French football.

. Hopefully no injuries in tomorrow’s Cup final for Lyon.

OFF-TOPIC: Laurie (and anyone else), do you any of you know much about this Toulon tournament in France that’s going on right now? Fox Soccer Channel is broadcasting the games live here in the US. Apparently France has won this int’l tournament 11 times (no one’s won it more than France), Brazil have won it 6 times (2nd highest). It’s a tournament of U23 players from their national teams, and is by invitation only. I don’t know any of the players on the France squad but some of them look very promising. There’s this kid called Quercia who’s a dynamo.

huhu edhe na shiptart ktuuuu po shkrumi.

Jean-Michel,
We must have posted pretty much at the same time! Your link was already there when I checked my post. Hey that means we stay on top of things!

It’s one thing to know the Euro is coming soon, it’s another to actually see the guys preparing for it. Can you taste it!

Sanrdahn, I keep trying to get away to watch the French play in the Toulon tourney, and I keep missing it. (Seriously, I planned one entire day around seeing one of the games, only to realize that the schedule I’d been looking at was EASTERN time. I’m on Pacific. I was NOT a happy camper.)

I have caught a little of the other group, though, including US, Italy and Ivory Coast. I love watching these not-quite-adult teams play.

France is playing tomorrow again, 9:30 my time. (I have triple-checked.) I’m hoping to see it.

To those who are curious about Toulon, it’s a tournament we typically do well in except this year les Espoirs, the regular U-21s, are in Sweden competing in a tournament, and also our U-19s are in Euro qualifying, so essentially our team there is a B version of our U-23 team. That’s not to say the players there are bad, and actually, they should be doing better, though they definitely don’t represent the strength we could have at that level if we selected our best for Toulon.

Oh but yes Doume. We are getting very close now. Tell you what, I’m actually feeling that ESPN Euro commercial of Portugal. Whats getting me is no France version (but a weird German one?). They could’ve easily incorporated some Platini and vintage Zizou moments to maybe an accordion or Edit Piaf background music but no….

It bugs me in a big way that ESPN didn’t do a France commercial.

I think they should have done some “black, blanc beur” footage to the Marseillaise. But maybe too controversial?

Yeah its like they hand picked the countries that will be in the final already.