La Liste! La Liste! (Gignac is Lithuania-bound, but no Hoarau)

the only thing i like about this team is dede gignac and diaby.

player i would of also call:
hoarau, flamini, luyindula, bodmer, and congre
drop:
anelka, briand, mandanda, a diarra, fanni, and rami

Domenech better not do anything stupid and put Fuxking Jeremy Toulalan in the center of defense!

It`s nice to see Rami get a call, he`s been deserving of one for a while now, he`s a really good center-back. I`m actually very glad Boumsong is injured. Clerc hasn`t reached his top form as of yet, It would be quite idiotic if he did call him up and told him to start. Clerc is going to have to get his rhythm back after being out for most of the season.

And Gignac! I`ve begging for him to get a call, a great player tactical to have, he`s reliable finisher a bit more versatility to his game than Hoarau. Hoarau, I`m sure will get his first cal soon but Gignac is very deserving, But it remains to be seen if he`ll get a run…

I came to the conclusion a while ago that Vieira`s days are over. He`s struggling to stay health and cant even reach top form. I don`t know about Diaby but I think he`s alright. Malouda should never get a call again!

Ben Arfa is on of my favourite player, he`s been coming off the bench recently and has shown some real signs of development and player growth. He`s giving OM some end-product and is showing some consistency. As soon as he can find a stating place for himself, I`m expecting to get a few calls in. Menez also, he`s been injured but by this time next year he should be getting some calls.
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I expect Benzema and Nico to start on the bench with Henry starting and leading the line (or Nico may play that role). Ribery, wide right, Gourcuff in the center, Nasri or Henry to the left and Lassana and Toulalan behind. To complete the back four with Sagna, Mexes, Gallas, Evra and Mandanda. Nothing different… Hopefully Gignac plays.

Line up i would like to see

———————-LLORIS———————
—Sagna—–Gallas—–Mexes—–evra
—————–LASS———Toulalan——-
———Nasri–Goucuff—Ribery
——————–Henry—–

Clerc is not a surprise, he has been rushed back for Lyon because they have no more defenders! And he has not really proven he is 100% back. Not sure why Flamini is wanted, let us not forget he is barely getting any time at Milan…talk about a poor move leaving Arsenal for both him and the Gooners. Alou Diarra is having a solid season for Bordeaux, I was always a bit sour on him but watch some of his games his play with Gourcuff is one of the main reasons Les Girodins are doing so well.

I think overall the list is good, even for Domenech!

More of my thoughts – http://thebeantownfrog.blogspot.com/2009/03/no-vieira-for-lithuania.html

Oh and I completely agree that Diaby over Vieira is a good thing. I think Vieira’s career in Blue is over, he has not been healthy in at least 3 years. Les Bleus cannot “hope” he some how recovers when he puts on the bleu blanc rouge of France.

————–Lloris————-
Sagna—-Mexes——-gallas—-Evra
————-Toulalan———–
Ribery——-Goucuff——-Nasri
——Gignac——–Henry—–

The list is not perfect according to me but it is nice to see some new names. Just would like to see Mandanda get replaced by Pele. Also I feel that though Flamini is not getting the most time to play at Milan Domenech could of replaced either Diaby or A.Diarra with him. I mean they both have similar positions and would serve the same purpose on the team being a tall imposing force in the midfield so why have two of them? Can’t wait to see Clerc play for France again hope its soon. As for the line up Michel Oliver, I couldn’t make a better line up than you have made. I feel we have the right kind of attack mindset with that lineup.

that is a good line-up M-O but it goes against the cardinal domenech rule #1: always have 2 defensive midfielders no matter what.

A quel nombre vous fait penser le nom Karembeu ?

Abou Diaby is a very talented and skillful player whom no one knows better than Wenger. Truly a genius with the ball and has amazing scoring technique.
His most recent goal against Newcastle is an affirmation.
He would be more creative and resourceful than the one dimensional Toul.
Also Clichy over Evra, absolutely no question about it.
Sorry it seems biased as a Gunner fan but watch their games and judge for yourselves.

Abou diaby is the future viera. He should definately play over toulalan. He adds more creativity and brings in the extra attacking option with gourcuff. Anelka has not been playing to well and maybe they should try gignac with henry up front. I also feel gallas form has not been that great , centre back is a real worry.

good line up

Right. I’m having a hard time seeing only one DM.Even Domenech expressed how worried he was with the defensive injuries. I expect him to play it as safe as possible back there with two DM’s. In the games I’ve seen Diaby, he’s looked rather good and has always lent a hand to the attack. I don’t see his selection as a problem.

I think that Diaby does bring an offensive edge that Toulalan does not but it needs to be realized that Toulalan is not on the team to add to the attack but to add to the defense. When it comes to this role no man in his right man can say Diaby does a better job. So I cannot aggre with the opinion that Diaby should play over Toulalan. But it would be nice to see these two play.

“right mind”

Videolar – Are you trying to wind me up, asking about Karembeu?

I’m a Gooner, and I like the look of Diaby at times, but I could see him being a flop for the National Team if his head is not in the right place when he plays. He can disappear, and he plays a lot of long balls to the other team.

When he’s playing really well, he doesn’t attempt any long balls, and he stays involved from central midfield. When he’s playing well, he will push forward. If he’s not on the ball pushing forward, he’s not involved enough.

anelka out, hourau in!

who will start up top?

Jeff is absolutely right about Diaby. I love Diaby’s skills but he blows hot and cold and is perpetually injured. He’ll play 1 or two games and be out for the next four. Yes he scored a great goal on Saturday with typically brilliant skill (he really is amazing to watch when he’s in the mood) but he was abysmal in the first half. That’s typical — he’ll be awful for one half and great the second half. He still hasn’t learned to stop holding onto the ball for too long, when to pass and who to pass to in tight situations. At times he seems totally overwhelmed with opponent’s tactics. I’m still not convinced that Diaby is a “future Vieira” (such comparisons are always silly anyway). I just wish he could get a consistent run of games so he could develop into the great footballer I believe he could become. But his injuries just won’t let him.

“Also Clichy over Evra, absolutely no question about it.” — are you kidding? Clichy and Evra are two of the best LB’s in Europe, no question, both have weaknesses and strengths. Right now, despite United’s stumbling form (and even tho Clichy had a good game on Saturday), I’d pick Evra over Clichy for Lithuania simply because Clichy has been in very patchy form this season. He’s not the same player he was last season, tho he’s showing signs of improving. He’s still unpredictable while Evra has been more consistent.

And Toulalan is far better defensively than Diaby. Diaby has some good defensive skills and awareness but he’s still got a lot to learn. Toulie’s much better in awareness, experience and in reading of the game.

“I also feel gallas form has not been that great” — you obviously haven’t been watching Arsenal, at least since November. Because for Arsenal he’s been absolutely superb in the last few months. He was our player of the month for February. Since the armband was taken off him, he’s been our most consistent rock. I can’t say enuf about Gallas’ current form — over time, thru all the drama, I’ve grown to respect him a lot. He’s put his head down and been totally dependable. And, notably, he didn’t play when we were slaughtered by Man City.

Here’s a spot-on analysis of the NT I found on the Guardian from a commentator called ‘Bobeto’. I thought I’d share:

“I think we can qualify, but I doubt we’ll win or play very nice football

For a start, we have defensive problems:

Both Goalkeepers are talented, but young, and not imposing enough, which leads to problems, especially from set pieces

Full backs are good, but Boumsong and Mexes, while very good technical defenders are prone to shocking lapses in concentration. Gallas is good but certainly not word class, and Domenech doesn’t trust Escude-Squillaci, for whatever reason.

Midfield is awful. Lassana Diarra is brilliant defensively, Diaby should be given a chance, but Toulalan is stifling us. He was one of the few plus points from 2008, but that only shows you how bad France were as opposed to how good he is. Sadly, as Pierre Menes pointed out last week on 100%Foot, Toulalan is Domenech’s man, the only player he’s played every time. But he doesn’t bring superb defence like Lassana Diarra nor does he attack like we need our no.8 to. Vieira doesn’t have the power of old, and Alou Diarra doesn’t have the precision of the old Vieira.

In attack we’re disjointed. Ribery plays on the left for Bayern but on the right for us, Henry often plays out wide, but doing so for Barca and doing so for France are quite different things. Benzema rarely impresses in Blue and our one true winger, Malouda, is horribly out of form. Gourcuff is good, but was anonymous against Argentina one pass to Anelka aside. Yes he was playing against Mascherano, but you have to be able to play against guys like that to progress at the World Cup.

So as things stand we’re something of a mush, unorganised in defense and unco-ordinated in attack, and lacking a midfield to properly link the two. One can’t help but think that Domenech has to take responsibility for the majority of that.”

I like having Toulalan in the side. I hope that stuff about Lassana being strong in defense is true.

If Ribery is disjointed by switching from the left to the right, then France probably don’t deserve to play in the next world cup.

I like the look of Domenech’s midfield and forwards recently:

Anelka or Benzema
Henry Gourcuff Ribery
Toulalan L. Diarra

This is an exciting lineup with a very good chance of doing well.

Benzema could be key. I still have to believe that the promise from his early appearances for France is still there. Otherwise, Anelka can get the odd goal.

Henry really is key. He can switch from wide left to up front, alone or in a 4-4-2, and he still looks top class.

I’m not a big fan of Domenech (I think the average spectator could usually pick a better side than he does), but I think he’s stumbled onto a system that might work and produce goals.

The safest back five would probably be:

Evra Gallas Mexes? Sagna
Lloris?

The real question marks are central defense and goalkeeper for me. Is Mexes the best we have? Maybe. Maybe he’s even very good, but I’ve caught him on some bad days. Somebody should be able to step in and do a decent job. Hopefully Domenech can figure this one out (or get lucky).

Mandanda – I don’t get to see him play often, but based on his performances for France, I’d say he’s had his chance, hasn’t really taken full advantage, and it’s time to give another young keeper a chance, such as Lloris. This is another one that Domenech should be able to handle.

So while on the one hand, I agree with Bobeto: we both think France will qualify, I’m much more optimistic about the midfield and forwards that Domenech has been selecting.