France Soccer News

CLAIREFONTAINE, France (AP) _ France will be without key players and its coach Raymond Domenech will be sitting in the stands when Les Bleus play Italy in a crucial European Championship qualifier. Defenders William Gallas and Willy Sagnol are both injured, and captain Patrick Vieira is struggling to overcome a thigh injury to be ready in time for Saturday's Group B match in Milan's San Siro stadium. ``William is a mainstay in the team,'' France winger Franck Ribery ...

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) _ Thierry Henry has completed his move to FC Barcelona after passing a medical exam. ``I'm really pleased to be here, it's been a long chase but I'm finally here ... and can't wait to show what I can do for the fans,'' Henry said Monday at a news conference at Barcelona. ``Hopefully I can be a great asset to the team.'' The former Arsenal striker underwent medical tests at Barcelona Hospital and continued ...

PARIS (AP) _ France has called up midfielders Abou Diaby of Arsenal and Lassana Diarra of Chelsea for a European Championship qualifier against Lithuania. Depleted by injuries to Thierry Henry, captain Patrick Vieira, and Franck Ribery, France coach Raymond Domenech also selected Karim Benzema, Samir Nasri and Frederic Piquionne for the March 24 match in Kaunas. Juventus striker David Trezeguet was not called up although Domenech said he does not ...

FIFA president Sepp Blatter appears to endorse Michel Platini to replace Lennart Johansson as UEFA president. ``In my heart, I remain a footballer,'' Blatter said Friday when asked which candidate he prefers. ``I am not ashamed to speak of my fondness for Michel Platini.'' The 77-year-old Johansson, who is bidding for a fourth term that would extend his time in office to 20 years, is up against the 51-year-old Platini, ...

Djibril Cisse is confident his broken leg has fully healed. The Marseille forward set up the second-half winner Saturday for Mamadou Niang as Marseille's 2-1 home win over Monaco moved it into fifth place. ``It went very well. I'm very happy, and very satisfied,'' Cisse said. It was Cisse's first competitive match since he was injured June 7 in a friendly against China _ ruling him out of France's World Cup squad and 16 league games this season. ``I tried ...

Lyon is so far ahead in the French league, the other teams appear to be fighting for second place. Lyon is 14 points clear of its rivals and heading for the winter break on course for a record sixth straight title, leaving Lens, Lille, and Sochaux tied on 29 points in the race for the runner-up spot. ``The league is more difficult than last year when, at the same period, ...

Marseille striker Djibril Cisse is fit to return to competitive play six months after breaking his leg. The France international, who broke his leg for the second time in two years in a friendly against China a week before the World Cup, was given the go-ahead from his doctor Thursday. ``After a six-month absence, I am finally going to be able to return to the field in the French league,'' ...

Lawyers for FIFA and France's soccer federation criticized efforts by two groups of fans demanding an official investigation of Zinedine Zidane's expulsion from the World Cup final, calling it a ``publicity stunt.'' A Paris court held a hearing Thursday to decide whether to allow the probe, reviving memories of the star's head-butt of Italy defender Marco Materazzi in extra time, which stunned millions of fans and led to a red ...

Police will double the number of people banned from Paris Saint-Germain's Parc des Princes Stadium in a bid to stop hooliganism, Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy said Tuesday. Last week, a plainclothes police officer shot two PSG fans _ killing one and wounding another _ after a horde of the club's supporters shouted racist and anti-Semitic epithets following a UEFA Cup match. Seventy-one people are currently banned from the Parc des ...

The shooting death of a Paris Saint-Germain supporter has prompted a political outcry and national outrage in France _ yet the racism and soccer violence it has exposed have formed a dark cloud over Paris' glamour club for more than 20 years. A black police officer, Antoine Granomort, killed one man and wounded another while under attack from a group of PSG supporters following Thursday's UEFA Cup match between PSG ...

French league leader Lyon heads into Sunday's home match against Auxerre high on confidence following a strong midweek performance against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. For the second season running, Lyon has qualified for the knockout stage of Europe's top club competition by winning its group _ this time with a match to spare following Tuesday's 2-2 draw at Madrid. The nine-time European champion has not beaten Lyon ...

Violence that broke out when Paris Saint-Germain fans ganged up on a Hapoel Tel Aviv supporter _ culminating in a shooting death _ shows the need to crack down on racism and anti-Semitism among soccer fans, the Paris mayor said Friday. The brawl Thursday night ended with a plainclothes police officer shooting into the crowd to protect the Hapoel fan, killing one person and injuring another, police said. ``The seriousness ...

Paris Saint-Germain is off to its worst ever start, and _ amazingly _ coach Guy Lacombe's job is not in danger. The 1996 Cup Winners' Cup champions are in 14th place in the French league with only 16 points from 14 matches, but PSG president Alain Cayzac continues to stand by his coach. ``If I changed the coach tomorrow, I would be very popular,'' Cayzac said Monday. ``I would be ...

League leader Lyon visits last-placed Sedan on Saturday with Brazil midfielder Juninho warning his teammates not to relax. ``It's never easy to play the team in last place,'' Juninho said. ``They will try and raise their game against the champions. We should treat this game the same way as if we were preparing to face Real Madrid.'' Sedan has won only one game this season in the French league, while ...

Lyon's 14-match winning run ended Saturday when the five-time defending French league champion lost 1-0 at Rennes. Cameroon midfielder Stephane M'Bia headed in a cross from winger Olivier Monterubbio in the 12th minute. ``We began the match timidly,'' Lyon coach Gerard Houllier said. ``We were not vigilant enough and we conceded a goal. This defeat leaves a bitter taste as we did not deserve to lose.'' The loss ended Lyon's chances of setting a new French record ...

France will play Argentina for the first time in 20 years in a friendly at Stade de France in St. Denis, France, on Feb. 7. The French soccer federation also said Friday that the two teams would meet again for another friendly, likely to be in 2009. France last played Argentina in March 1986 in a friendly at Parc des Princes, which France won 2-0. Argentina beat France 2-1 in ...

Paris Saint-Germain and former Portugal striker Pedro Pauleta was suspended for two games by the French soccer league after being sent off and using abusive language toward a lineswoman. On Saturday, Pauleta kicked out at an opponent in the closing seconds of PSG's 1-0 home win over Rennes. The lineswoman alerted the referee to the incident, which got Pauleta a second yellow card. Pauleta turned and shouted abuse at the ...

A sixth straight league title already looks to be heading Lyon's way. Lyon went to Marseille on Sunday for a match billed as perhaps its hardest game of the season so far and crushed the second-place team 4-1 for a club-record 11th straight win. Eight points clear in the championship, Lyon goes into Wednesday's League Cup match against Paris Saint-Germain having scored 34 goals to win 13 of 14 games ...

Juninho scored two goals Sunday to help Lyon extend its winning streak to 11 matches in all competitions with a 4-1 victory at Marseille in the French league. Substitute Karim Benzema and Kim Kallstrom also scored for Lyon, which leads the league with 28 points _ eight more than second-place Marseille. Habib Bamogo scored a consolation goal for the hosts. Juninho curled in a free kick from 20 yards in ...

Nantes lost 1-0 at Nancy and Monaco slipped to a 3-1 home loss against Toulouse, leaving both defeated clubs still deep in relegation trouble in the French league on Saturday. Nantes, which succumbed to Mikael Chretien's goal in the 53rd minute, is in last place with six points from 10 rounds. The win improved third-place Nancy to 19 points. Monaco is second-to-last on seven points and lost despite taking an early lead through former Juventus striker Marco ...

Marseille has a chance to close to within two points of Lyon at the top of the French league on Sunday. It'll have to win against Lyon to do it and the record five-time defending champion is on a 10-match winning streak. Marseille hasn't won the league since 1993 _ it was stripped of that title because of its involvement in a match-fixing scandal _ and midfielder Modeste M'Bami says ...

Zinedine Zidane is to become a consultant with French TV station Canal Plus. In a deal that could involve providing commentary on matches, Zidane signed with the cable station because ``it's a channel I know well. I will stay close to football because that's what I know how to do.'' Zidane hasn't kicked a ball since he was sent off in the World Cup final on July 9 for head-butting ...

Marseille conceded a late penalty in a 1-1 tie against a short-handed Lens squad Sunday, leaving five-time defending champion Lyon five points atop the French First Division standings. Mamadou Niang gave Marseille the lead in the 63rd when he converted a penalty after rounding goalkeeper Charles Itandje but being taken down hard by Gregory Vignal. Vignal was sent off for the foul, requiring Lens to rally with a man disadvantage. ...

Brazil midfielder Juninho scored an 88th-minute winner Saturday to lead unbeaten Lyon to a 2-1 home win over local rival Saint-Etienne. Portugal midfielder Tiago put Lyon ahead in the 65th minute with his third league goal of season, but Yoan Hautcoeur levelled two minutes later. Juninho, who went close with two free kicks, missed a penalty in the closing minutes. But with two minutes remaining of normal time, substitute Florent Malouda crossed from the left and he scored. Five-time ...

Zinedine Zidane was among those nominated for this year's FIFA World Player of the Year award. The former captain of France's national team made the shortlist despite ending his career being ejected from the World Cup final against Italy for head butting Marco Materazzi in the chest. Italians Fabio Cannavaro and Andrea Pirlo, who were named the World Cup's best players along with Zidane, were also nominated for the award. ...

France got back on a winning course after its loss to Scotland and Thierry Henry moved closer to Michel Platini's French national team record for goals. Playing against the Faeroe Islands was a good tonic for both. Henry's 22nd-minute goal Wednesday helped Les Bleus topple the overwhelmed Faerosese 5-0 and put the Arsenal striker within three of Platini's record. ``It's not something I think about when I go out on ...

Substitute David Trezeguet scored two goals Wednesday to help France beat the Faeroe Islands 5-0 in a European Championship qualifier. Louis Saha, Nicolas Anelka and Thierry Henry also scored as France bounced back from Saturday's 1-0 loss to Scotland. France and Scotland have nine points in Group B from four matches. Italy is third with seven. Les Bleus wasted several chances against a team 177 places below it in FIFA ...

Vikash Dhorasoo has been released by Paris Saint-Germain for criticizing coach Guy Lacombe. The former France midfielder accused Lacombe in a Sept. 23 interview with L'Equipe of telling the media that Dhorasoo was injured to keep him out of the team. Three days later, he was cut from the squad and summoned to meet club president Alain Cayzac. ``PSG has terminated Vikash Dhorasoo's contract,'' PSG communications officer Jean-Philippe d'Hallivillee said ...

The attacking partnership of David Trezeguet and Thierry Henry was once the envy of Europe. It now looks likely to be over after France's surprise defeat to Scotland. It is three years since the pair last combined well _ in a 3-0 away win against Germany _ and Trezeguet's future looks bleak after France's 1-0 loss in European Championship qualifying on Saturday. Since scoring the golden goal against Italy in ...

Stung by a surprise loss to Scotland, France gets a chance to bounce back against the Faeroe Islands. Raymond Domenech's team lost its first away qualifying game in 14 years, 1-0, at Hampden Park on Saturday to slip three points behind the Scots in qualifying for the 2008 European Championship. Now Thierry Henry and his teammates have a home game Wednesday against a Faeroes team which hasn't scored a goal ...