Sissoko, Payet return to France’s squad for World Cup qualifiers

Paris, Sep 29 (IANS) Moussa Sissoko and Dimitri Payet were recalled to injury-riddled French national football team for 2018 World Cup European qualifiers early in October.

The French team's head coach Didier Deschamps announced a 24-strong squad here for last two group matches against Bulgaria and Belarus on October 7 and 10 respectively, reports Xinhua news agency.

Benjamin Mendy, Paul Pogba and Ousmane Dembele were sidelined for the two encounters of Les Bleus. Tottenham Hotspur's Sissoko filled the void left by Pogba in the midfield, while Marseille's Payet was recruited to replace Nabil Fekir on the attacking line.

After finishing a lackluster 0-0 draw at home against Luxembourg, France led Group A with one-point advantage over Sweden.

Nine group winners of European qualifiers will automatically secure spots in World Cup finals, while the best eight group runners-up will fight for the remaining four tickets to Russia.

France's 24-member squad: Goalkeepers: Alphonse Areola (Paris Saint-Germain), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur), Steve Mandanda (Marseille)

Defenders: Lucas Digne (Barcelona), Christophe Jallet (Nice), Presnel Kimpembe (Paris Saint-Germain), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Layvin Kurzawa (Paris Saint-Germain), Djibril Sidibe (Monaco), Samuel Umtiti (Barcelona), Raphael Varane (Real Madrid)

Midfielders: N'Golo Kante (Chelsea), Blaise Matuidi (Juventus), Adrien Rabiot (Paris Saint-Germain), Moussa Sissoko (Tottenham Hotspur), Corentin Tolisso (Bayern Munich)

Forwards: Kingsley Coman (Bayern Munich), Olivier Giroud (Arsenal), Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid), Alexandre Lacazette (Arsenal), Thomas Lemar (Monaco), Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain), Dimitri Payet (Marseille), Florian Thauvin (Marseille).

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