France coach Raymond Domenech will on Thursday name his squad for the World Cup qualifying play-off against the Republic of Ireland on November 14 and 18.
Patrick Vieira has a strong case for a recall having recently returned from injury with his club Inter Milan. The 33-year-old has been absent from international duty since June.
But Lassana Diarra of Real Madrid and Jeremy Toulalan of Lyon are currently Domenech's preferred central midfield partnership.
Domenech is deprived of the services of injured left-back Gael Clichy (back) and winger Franck Ribery (knee), both of whom will miss the two games against Giovanni Trapattoni’s Ireland.
Bordeaux playmaker Yoann Gourcuff, who scored the opening goal in his side's 2-0 Champions League victory at Bayern Munich on Tuesday, is available again after missing France's last two qualifying matches through injury.
Karim Benzema, on target for Real Madrid in their 1-1 draw at AC Milan on Tuesday, will compete with Andre-Pierre Gignac for the sole striking role in Domenech's customary 4-2-3-1 formation for the matches.
