Nine players who took part in France's World Cup fiasco, among them goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and winger Florent Malouda, were named Thursday in coach Laurent Blanc's squad for Euro 2012 qualifiers early next month. Blanc had left out all 23 members of the World Cup squad for his first match in charge, a 2-1 defeat by Norway in a friendly in Oslo on Aug. 11. Nine of them return for the qualifiers against Belarus on Sept. 3 in Paris and Bosnia four days later in Sarajevo, although the 21-man squad remained somewhat experimental with four uncapped players. “To have a young team is a good thing but it's not enough to be competitive at the highest level,” Blanc told a news conference. “We tried to come up with a mixture of talented youngsters and more experienced players who can guide them.” Blanc, who took over from Raymond Domenech after the World Cup and is trying to rebuild the team after its shambolic performance in South Africa, called up Lorient striker Kevin Gameiro for the first time. “He's young, scores a lot of a goals and can be an interesting solution up front,” Blanc said of the 23-year-old Gameiro, who scored 17 Ligue 1 goals last season. The other uncapped players on the list are goalkeeper Cedric Carrasso and defenders Mamadou Sakho and Benoit Tremoulinas. Midfielder Jeremy Toulalan, who was banned for one game for his part in the World Cup revolt and could have played the second qualifier, was not on the list. The French Football Federation (FFF) banned Nicolas Anelka for 18 matches, World Cup captain Patrice Evra for five and Franck Ribery for three. A fifth player summoned by the federation, Eric Abidal, escaped without sanction but Blanc did not pick him either. Blanc also had to make do without playmaker Yoann Gourcuff, serving suspension after getting a red card in France's last match in South Africa. Squad: Goalkeepers: Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux), Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille). Defenders: Gael Clichy (Arsenal), Philippe Mexes (Roma), Adil Rami (Lille), Mamadou Sakho (PSG), Bacary Sagna (Arsenal), Benoit Tremoulinas (Bordeaux). Midfielders: Abou Diaby (Arsenal), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid), Yann M'Vila (Stade Rennes), Florent Malouda (Chelsea), Jeremy Menez (Roma), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille). Forwards: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Kevin Gameiro (Lorient), Guillaume Hoarau (PSG), Loic Remy Marseille), Louis Saha (Everton).
