Sagna in talks on new Arsenal deal

Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna has confirmed he is in talks to extend his contract, but he has not ruled out a return to France.



Sagna, 30, is entering into the final season of his current deal at the Emirates Stadium, and so could become a free agent this time next year and agree a lucrative Bosman transfer.



Big-spending pair Paris St Germain and Monaco are said to be monitoring the situation, but former Auxerre defender Sagna, who has twice recovered from broken leg, hinted he would be happy to stay on at Arsenal if an agreement can be brokered.



Speaking to L'Equipe, Sagna said: "There are [talks], but I still haven't extended my contract. "I am talking, and I am not at a bad club either." When asked whether he could return to play in France, Sagna, who is currently on international duty, added: "It is possible. "We would have to see in which conditions and, in sporting terms, what they propose. I won't go just anywhere. "If I stay at Arsenal, I will try to have a good season, there's the World Cup at the end of it. "If I am to leave, it will be a new challenge."

Lloris: No need to fear Spain

France captain Hugo Lloris says his side should have no fear when facing World Cup holders Spain in their Group I top-of-the-table clash on Tuesday.

France have only lost one of their eight competitive encounters with Spain (EURO 2012 1/4 finals).

France go into the game two points ahead of Spain with the opportunity to extend their lead at the Stade de France following their opponents' disappointing 1-1 draw with Finland on Friday.

France had no such problems with a 3-1 win over Georgia and Tottenham goalkeeper Lloris does not feel Les Bleus should change their approach against the side who beat them 2-0 at Euro 2012.

He said: "It doesn't change the way we'll be going into the game.

"We know how good Spain are and they are able to come here to win."

France face Spain following a win inspired by goals by Olivier Giroud, Mathieu Valbuena and Franck Ribery at home to third place Georgia.



Another win for France on Tuesday would leave Spain facing a potential play-off to reach the World Cup finals in Brazil.

Pogba and Varane named in France squad

Teenagers Raphaël Varane and Paul Pogba have been rewarded for their form respectively by being named in the France squad.



Didier Deschamps admitted this week that the 19-year-old was on his radar and he has been selected in his latest party.



It is the first time that the midfielder has been picked at full international level.



Rod Fanni has been called up to the France squad for the World Cup qualifying games against Georgia and Spain after Mathieu Debuchy was ruled out injured, coach Didier Deschamps said on Monday.



France play Georgia and Spain on March 22 and 26.



Squad 



Goalkeepers: Mickaël Landreau (Bastia), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham), Stève Mandanda (Marseille).



Defenders: Gaël Clichy (Manchester City), Rod Fanni(Olympique Marseille ), Patrice Evra (Manchester United), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Christophe Jallet (PSG), Mamadou Sakho (PSG), Raphaël Varane (Real Madrid), Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa (Newcastle).



Midfielders: Yohan Cabaye (Newcastle), Maxime Gonalons (Lyon), Blaise Matuidi (PSG), Paul Pogba (Juventus), Franck Ribéry (Bayern Munich), Moussa Sissoko (Newcastle), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille).



Forwards: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Olivier Groud (Arsenal), Bafetimbi Gomis (Lyon), Jérémy Ménez (PSG), Dimitri Payet (Lille), Loïc Rémy (Queens Park Rangers).

Benzema: I’d rather face Ramos than Puyol

Real Madrid and French international striker, Karim Benzema spoke to the media prior to Tuesday evening`s 2014 World Cup qualifier against Spain at the Vicente Calderon.



He  would much rather face his own teammate, Sergio Ramos, than Spain`s two other centre-backs, Barcelona duo Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol.

Benzema began by discussing his Real Madrid teammates, of which there are five, but mostly discussed centre-back Sergio Ramos and goalkeeper, Iker Casillas.



“I’ve been getting messages from a few of the lads, especially Sergio Ramos, who’s a good friend of mine. I would rather be up against him than Gerard Piqué or Carles Puyol, because I know him better.



“Casillas is one of the best players in the world, that’s all that needs to be said on the matter.”



The Frenchman then discussed the Spanish national team and losing to Spain in the Euro 2012 tournament.



“They are the best team in the world – they’ve won everything there is to win. I play with a lot of international players at Madrid, so I know what quality is. Having said that, I don’t think they are unbeatable, this is not mission impossible. It’s still 11 against 11.



“We lost this game [in June] but it doesn’t mean anything, that competition is now over. Now we have to try and win in the Calderón.



This game is different as it’s an international game, but the Calderón is always a difficult place to go, whether you are playing against Spain or Atlético Madrid.”

Lloris: France must attack Spain

Hugo Lloris said France must hit Spain 'where it hurts' when they face Vicente del Bosque's side in World Cup qualifying on Tuesday.



The two sides met back in June when the world and European champions strolled to a 2-0 victory in the quarter-finals of Euro 2012.



But Tottenham goalkeeper Lloris believes his side can take all three points if they take their chances.



"It could be difficult, but we have to be together, and everyone has to put in a huge effort and hit them where it hurts," Lloris told reporters.



"We will certainly have our chances, and we cannot let them pass."



The pair have had contrasting build-ups to Tuesday's encounter, with Spain strolling to a 4-0 win over Belarus, while Les Bleus fell to a shock defeat at home to Japan on Friday.

Lloris happy to bide time

France captain Hugo Lloris has attempted to deflect the negativity surrounding his transfer to Tottenham, saying he never expected to walk straight into the team.



Even though Lloris made his belated Premier League debut in last Sunday's 2-0 win against Aston Villa at White Hart Lane, the rumour is that manager Andre Villas-Boas will recall veteran American Brad Friedel when Spurs take on Chelsea next times out.



In an interview with L'Equipe, Lloris has banished some of the myths behind his deadline day move from Lyon to North London and has said he does not intend to "create trouble" if he does not get the No.1 spot straight away.



"We have to keep some perspective because I have only been a month at Spurs, I arrived during the season with a team already in place and I have only missed three matches," Lloris said. "I have not signed at Tottenham to play a [substitute] role, but I am at the disposal of the team.



"I have just been hired as part of the future project. Do I have guarantees for the future? No, I have not. The coach will make his choices. I just came to a new club so I am not here to create trouble, but rather to bring solutions.



"As for the rumours that I am the choice of the chairman not the coach, I talked with the coach and there is no ambiguity. He told me everyone at Tottenham wanted me to come, and in England the manager has a power on that kind of thing."



Lloris is convinced he has made the right choice by signing for Tottenham and he is relishing the demands of plying his trade in the Premier League.



"There are more contacts on the keepers and the game is much faster, but if I have to take some blows I will take them, I am prepared for that," he added. "To me it was an important choice to make this move. It is a new adventure, a new culture. Indeed I expected to leave [France] much earlier, but you cannot control that as a player.



"When you come into a new club, you have to prove yourself and that is logical. Things will come naturally, I won't force them. I expected that because England remains a specific culture. Englishmen want to see you play on their pitches before judging you, but this questioning is fine to me."



France coach Didier Deschamps has confirmed that Lloris remains his first choice keeper despite his limited first team action at Tottenham and he will start in Friday's night's international against Japan.

Spain leave it late; Germany win

A review of the rest of Tuesday night's World Cup qualifying campaign, including wins for Spain and Germany.



Roberto Soldado's 86th-minute winner saved Spain from an embarrassing goalless draw with Georgia in the opening match of their World Cup qualifying campaign.



The Valencia striker, starting for the world champions ahead of Cesc Fabregas and Fernando Torres, swept the ball home following a short corner to spare the visitors' blushes.



Soldado was the only change to the side that started the Euro 2012 final victory over Italy, but Vicente del Bosque's side were far from at their slick best and almost went behind when Alexander Amisulashvili struck a post.



France topped Spain's Group I after making it two wins out of two with a 3-1 triumph over Belarus.



Etienne Capoue put Didier Deschamps side in front early in the second half and Christophe Jallet added a second.



Les Bleus had a scare when Sergey Kornilenko missed a penalty and Anton Putsila did score a minute later, but Franck Ribery settled the nerves 10 minutes from time.



Germany continued their 100% start to Group C with a 2-1 win in Austria.



Goals from Marco Reus and a Mesut Ozil penalty either side of half-time had Joachim Low's side in control, Zlatko Junuzovic pulling one back for the hosts.



Sweden won their opening game 2-0 at home to Kazakhstan, Rasmus Elm and Marcus Berg on target.



Italy got their first win in Group B with a 2-0 success over Malta.



After a 2-2 draw with Bulgaria in their opener, goals at either end of the match from Mattia Destro and Federico Peluso gave the hosts three points.



Bulgaria joined them on four points after a bad-tempered 1-0 win over Armenia.



Stanislav Manolev scored the winner, but the highlight of the second half was a flurry of red cards, Bulgaria's Svetoslav Dyakov and Armenia's Marcos Pizelli and Gevorg Ghazaryan all sent off.



Holland, so poor in the European Championship, won 4-1 in Hungary to get their second win in Group D.



Jeremain Lens' early opener was quickly cancelled out by a penalty from Balazs Dzsudzsak, but Bruno Martins Indi scored to give the Dutch a 2-1 half-time lead.



Lens with his second and Klaas Jan Huntelaar struck it the second half to ensure a convincing win.



Romania joined them on top of the group after a 4-0 win at home to Andorra, Gabriel Torje, Costin Lazar, Valerica Gaman and Alexandru Maxim on target.



Turkey were 3-0 winners over 10-man Estonia, the goals from Emre Belozoglu, Umut Bulut and Selcuk Inan. Enar Jaager was sent off for the visitors after 19 minutes.



Portugal scored three times in the last 30 minutes to beat Azerbaijan 3-0 Tuesday for its second straight win in World Cup qualifying.



Substitute Silvestre Varela scored with his first touch of the game in the 63rd minute, Ronaldo was also involved in second goal five minutes from the end and Bruno Alves headed in four minutes later as Portugal's misfiring attack found its touch after hitting the woodwork four times in a game it dominated.

Diaby in doubt for Belarus

Midfielder Abou Diaby is doubtful for France's World Cup qualifier against Belarus on Tuesday, according to coach Didier Deschamps.



France beat Finland 1-0 in their opening qualifier on Friday, with Arsenal man Diaby scoring the winner in an impressive performance.



However, national team coach Deschamps has raised concerns about the 26-year-old's fitness after the fixture.



The 43-year-old has now indicated the former Auxerre man is also struggling from a knock and is unlikely to recover in time to feature against Belarus at the Stade de France.



Deschamps told reporters: "It will be difficult for him to be available for tomorrow's game.



"He took a bad knock and felt a muscle discomfort. He knows himself and maybe a little more than everyone (if he is fit).



"Before considering whether he has recovered from the injury to take the field, we should not have any concerns on the massage table."



Diaby's return to the national side came after an impressive display for Arsene Wenger's men in a 2-0 win over Liverpool, after he managed just four substitute appearances in the English Premier League during an injury-riddled 2011/12 season.

France recall Diaby for World Cup qualifiers

France coach Didier Deschamps on Wednesday recalled midfielder Abou Diaby, who has not played for the national team for over a year, for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers in Finland on September 7 and at home against Belarus four days later.



Injury-prone Diaby last featured with Les Bleus in a friendly against Poland in June last year and missed the European Championship because of a calf injury.



The 26-year-old, regarded for years as one of the best French midfielders, has won 15 caps.



"There always will be questions about his physical fragility but he prepared well, he played 90 minutes (for Arsenal) last weekend. He is on the right path," Deschamps told a news conference.



"His potential is huge. He is a very interesting player. He's also 26, more mature, which is crucial for a midfielder."



Paris St Germain winger Jeremy Menez returns after he served a one-match ban for insulting the referee in the Euro 2012 quarter-final defeat to eventual champions Spain.



"His suspension is over, this is ancient history. I am only interested in the future and he can be part of it. It is up to him to understand what he can do and cannot," Deschamps said.



Deschamps, who replaced Laurent Blanc, in July, left out Newcastle forward Hatem Ben Arfa, who received a warning when he was summoned to a disciplinary hearing along with Menez, Manchester City's Samir Nasri and Stade Rennes' Yann Mvila after the Euros.



Deschamps had been at odds with Ben Arfa when he was his coach at Olympique Marseille.



"I am in a new position, I am not his everyday coach anymore. I know him, as a person and as a player. If I had no intention to call him someday, I would not include him in the provisional list," Deschamps said.



Nasri is serving a three-match ban for his conduct during Euro 2012, while Mvila, who received a warning at the disciplinary hearing, was not selected.



France have been drawn in qualifying group H, also containing defending champions Spain and Georgia.



Squad:



Goalkeepers: Mickael Landreau (Lille), Hugo Lloris (Olympique Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Olympique Marseille)



Defenders: Gael Clichy (Manchester City), Patrice Evra (Manchester United), Christophe Jallet (Paris St Germain) Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Adil Rami (Valence), Anthony Reveillere (Olympique Lyon), Mamadou Sakho (Paris St Germain), Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa (Montpellier)



Midfielders: Yohan Cabaye (Newcastle), Etienne Capoue (Toulouse), Abou Diaby (Arsenal), Maxime Gonalons (Olympique Lyon), Blaise Matuidi (Paris St Germain), Rio Mavuba (Lille), Mathieu Valbuena (Olympique Marseille)



Strikers: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Olivier Giroud (Arsenal), Bafetimbi Gomis (Olympique Lyon), Jeremy Menez (Paris St Germain), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)