Preview: Romania vs. France
UEFA WCQ - Group 7
Coach Raymond Domenech had already called up defender Jean-Alain Boumsong on Wednesday night as cover for the Arsenal captain.
Lyon defender Boumsong is expected to challenge Sevilla's Sebastien Squillaci for a starting spot in the center of France's defense in Constanta in the Group 7 match.
France is already without injured midfielder Lassana Diarra and has fitness doubts over striker Nicolas Anelka, who is nursing a sore thigh he picked up while playing for Chelsea in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday.
Domenech also called up uncapped Rennes striker Jimmy Briand on Wednesday.
Uncapped Rennes striker Jimmy Briand and central defender Jean-Alain Boumsong were called into the France squad for Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Romania.
Briand and Boumsong will arrive at France's Clairefontaine training camp on Thursday, team press officer Francois Manardo said on Wednesday.
Boumsong earned his 24th cap as a substitute in the 2-0 loss to Italy at the European Championship in June.
But coach Raymond Domenech did not summon Mathieu Flamini from AC Milan as cover for injured midfielder Lassana Diarra. Domenech had hoped Flamini would be available but the 24-year-old defensive midfielder has a knock to his ankle and was not fit to play.
France plays Romania in Constanta on Saturday and then faces Tunisia in a home friendly at Stade de France on Tuesday.
Domenech is under pressure after France lost its opening qualifier 3-1 against Austria on Sept. 6. Les Bleus bounced back four days later to beat Serbia 2-1 at home.
France coach Raymond Domenech hopes striker Nicolas Anelka has shrugged off a thigh muscle problem and will be fit to play in Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Romania.
Anelka limped out of Chelsea's 2-0 home win against Aston Villa on Saturday after scoring his fourth league goal of the season, but Domenech said the 29-year-old forward has made good progress.
UEFA WC Qualifying
"There was a small worry about (Anelka), but he saw the doctor yesterday (Monday) and for the time being he's fine," Domenech said Tuesday on the French football federation's Web site.
Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra will miss the match because of swelling to his left knee, but Domenech was yet to decide whether to call up a replacement.
France has three points from its first two matches and is in fourth place in Group 7. It lost 3-1 to Austria on Sept. 6 but bounced back to beat Serbia 2-1 four days later, with Anelka scoring the second goal.
But anything less than a win against Romania in Constanta could cost Domenech his job.
The FFF kept him on despite France's group-stage exit from the European Championship in June, but the defeat in Vienna puts the pressure firmly back on him. The FFF is set to meet after the Romania match to decide his future.
"We all want to go to this World Cup," Domenech said. "This match is important but not decisive, as there will be others."
Domenech says he is not worried about the pressure he's under.
"The more complicated it gets, the more I want to fight," he said. "Everyone has their own character."
France's squad has been boosted by the return from injury of midfielder Patrick Vieira and winger Franck Ribery.
"The return of top-level players is always important," Domenech said. "They both carry some weight at international level."
France also has a friendly against Tunisia on Oct. 14.
Romania coach Victor Piturca says a win against France in its upcoming World Cup qualifier will help erase the humiliation of his team's 3-0 defeat at the hands of Lithuania last month.
Romania will play France on Saturday in the Black Sea port of Constanta in its third match of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. The two teams played out a scoreless draw when they last met at the European Championship in June.
"We will play against a formidable team, still the world's second best, but we must beat them," Piturca said in an interview with sports broadcaster GSP TV late Sunday.
Piturca said that while even a draw "would not be bad", a victory would "erase the failure with Lithuania."
Romania lost at home to Lithuania in its opening World Cup qualifier on Sept. 6, in what was one of the team's worst losses of recent times. Romania managed a 1-0 win at the Faeroe Islands in its second Group 7 match the following week.
The loss to Lithuania and a lackluster win over the Faroe Islands have angered Romanian football supporters and triggered calls for Piturca's resignation.
"Nobody has the right to ask me to leave, considering how much I have done," said Piturca, who was once revered for his results with the national team.
Piturca said Mirel Radoi, Paul Codrea, Banel Nicolita, Cosmin Contra and Marius Niculae will not be available to play against France due to fitness and injury issues.
Striker Adrian Mutu and captain Cristi Chivu, who both missed the matches against Lithuania and the Faeroe Islands due to injuries, are expected to play.
France coach Raymond Domenech welcomed back Patrick Vieira and Franck Ribery from injury for an upcoming 2010 World Cup qualifier against Romania.
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Both players had missed France's two opening Group 7 games, with France losing 3-1 away to Austria before bouncing back with a 2-1 win at home against Serbia. Domenech also called up Atletico Madrid striker Florent Sinama-Pongolle, but Lyon winger Sidney Govou was ruled out after spraining his ankle in Lyon's 1-1 draw against Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
"When Patrick is good, he is exceptional," Domenech said when announcing his squad on Thursday. "He is one of the best midfielders in Europe. When he is on form, he is indispensable to the French team."
Even though Ribery is not fully fit, Domenech hopes the winger can still have an impact against Romania.
"Franck's acceleration is still the same, even though he is unable to last a whole match yet," Domenech said.
Vieira recently returned to Inter's starting lineup following a series of thigh injuries, while Ribery came back from an ankle operation. Ribery last played for France in the 2-0 defeat to Italy that knocked France out of the European Championship, while Vieira missed the whole tournament with a thigh tear.
France travels to Constanta to face Romania on Oct. 11, and then plays Tunisia three days later in a friendly at Stade de France.
Domenech acknowledged that he is under pressure to get a win in Romania, as the French Football Federation is set to decide after the match whether or not he stays on as coach.
"Ever since my first match, I've been telling myself that it could be my last," Domenech said. "There is nothing set in writing, nothing definitive about this job. What concerns me is that the team performs as well as possible."
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille).
Defenders: Eric Abidal (Barcelona), Gael Clichy (Arsenal), Patrice Evra (Manchester United), Rod Fanni (Rennes), William Gallas (Arsenal), Philippe Mexes (Roma), Bakary Sagna (Arsenal), Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla).
Midfield: Lassana Diarra (Portsmouth), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon), Patrick Vieira (Inter Milan), Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich), Florent Malouda (Chelsea), Hatem Ben Arfa (Marseille).
Forwards: Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea), Karim Benzema (Lyon), Thierry Henry (Barcelona), Florent Sinama-Pongolle (Atletico Madrid).
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