Domenech waiting on Thuram fitness
France head coach Raymond Domenech admits he is still uncertain of the availability of defender Lilian Thuram for next Wednesday week’s vital World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin.
Thuram returned from a year-long exile in the recent friendly win over the Ivory Coast, but his comeback was ended prematurely by a leg injury.
The 33-year-old defender returned to training with club Juventus this week, but Domenech is still unsure of his readiness for the World Cup double-bill, which includes a home meeting with the Faroe Islands before the September 7th clash with Ireland at Lansdowne Road.
Domenech, who named Thuram in his squad for those games on Thursday, said: “I talked to Lilian on Thursday morning. He resumed training with his club. We will wait and see how his injury evolves. I’ll make up my mind next week about him.”
Regardless of Thuram’s situation, the French manager will have a vastly improved squad available to him than for last October’s scoreless draw in Paris, with Zinedine Zidane and Claude Makelele having joined Thuram in ending their self-imposed exiles, Bayern Munich right back Willy Sagnol (injured on that occasion) back in the side and players such as Paris St German’s Vikash Dhorasoo and Lyon winger Florent Malouda establishing themselves as genuinely international class over the past 12 months.
But the France coach insists he will be taking no chances in his side’s remaining four qualifiers: “There is no time for experiments and for talks any longer. We are now in a situation with four matches to play and to win.
“They are all crucial and I don’t want to put one above the others. We need to win them all to qualify for the World Cup finals. Nothing else matters.”
