France NT Transfer Rumors, Part 1: Abidal and Malouda

It’s transfer time again, and the rumor mill is buzzing. A number of our French guys are in demand, largely because of their performances in last year’s World Cup. So who’s going to be switching uniforms next year?

First a quick look at a couple of Olympique Lyonnais players. (For more in-depth coverage, be sure to check out Inara’s OL blog.)

Leftback Eric Abidal and and left winger Florent Malouda are two of my favorite players on the France NT, and they’ve also been inseparable and indispensible in holding up the left side of the field for Lyon. So it’s very hard for me to imagine them not playing together, but that’s apparently what’s going to happen after this season. Both are saying they’re on the way out the door.

Abidal’s exit isn’t much of a surprise — there have been murmurings for months. The assumption all along has been that he would go to Barcelona, but recently there have been some rumors that Valencia is also watching attentively. (Interestingly, at one point there were some rumors about Abidal possibly going to play in Italy, but after Lyon’s Champions League game in Rome he attacked Italy’s racism and said he would never play there.)

Unlike Abidal, Malouda’s probable departure was a little unexpected, as he’s under contract with Lyon for four more years. But his World Cup performance and his play since then have attracted attention, especially from teams in England — ManU, Chelsea and Arsenal have been mentioned — and Italy, where Juventus seems to be the top suitor. Says Florent:

“I know I have a long contract,” he added in French newspaper Le Progres. “But I might not have the same possibilities next year and OL could make a good financial deal out of it.”

Now the question is, will Lyon be willing to let him go?

For a look at what Malouda’s capable of, check out the video below.

Oh, and if you speak French, check out this adorable video of Abidal and Malouda on Sébastien Cauet’s show right after World Cup.