Watch out for Ribery!

France winger Franck Ribery wants to play like Zidane and win the Ballon D’or. Leading France to victory this summer would go some way to helping him toward those goals. I, for one, am a big, big fan of the player. In the post-Zidane era, he has just about looked like France’s best player. Reports coming out of Germany have it that he’s just about the best player in the Budesliga. With Ribery in his best form, France will be very imposing in at least one of the 11 positions.

Another no-brainer for Domenech has to be Karim Benzema. Bernard Laporte metioned Benzema in his recent quotes. Laporte was also talking about Ribery’s comments that he didn’t fancy playing in France again. Laporte is far from alone in his interest in Benzema. The player is of the highest quality, and should be standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Ribery leading France to glory this summer.

Domenech is also counting on Thierry Henry this summer. Henry really did a job for France in Euro 2008 qualifying, coming up big in crucial games near the end. His health is a question mark, so it’s a bit of a concern that Domenech is apparently relying so heavily on him. Those concerned about Domenech being inflexible (i.e., short on ideas), might be worried that Domenech will throw Henry into the first 11 regardless of his form.