Claude Makelele
Made his debut for France on July 22, 1995, against Norway, aged 22. Currently playing for Chelsea, Makelele has 40 France caps and has scored 0 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: February 18, 1973
Height: 1.74 m (5ft 8in)
Fact: Makelele's father played football for Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) at senior level.

Patrick Vieira
Made his debut for France on February 26, 1997, against Holland, aged 20. Currently playing for Juventus, Vieira has 84 France caps and has scored 4 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: June 23, 1976
Height: 1.91m (6ft 4in)
Fact: Vieira is well known for his fiery temper; by March 2006, he had been sent off 11 times in his footballing career, including 1 red card while playing for his country.

Zinedine Zidane
Made his debut for France on August 17, 1994, against the Czech Republic, aged 22. Currently playing for Real Madrid, Zidane has 99 France caps and has scored 28 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: June 23, 1972
Height: 1.85m (6ft 1in)
Fact: Zidane scored twice in France's World Cup final victory against Brazil in 1998.

Alou Diarra
Made his debut for France in October 2004, against the Republic of Ireland, aged 23. Currently playing for RC Lens, Diarra has 8 France caps and has scored 0 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: July 15, 1981
Height: 1.90m (6ft 2in)
Fact: Diarra was officially a Liverpool player between 2002 and 2005 but he never made a single first team appearance for the club, spending the whole period out on loan at Dutch side Le Havre, Italian side SC Bastia, and French side RC Lens.

Vikash Dhorasoo
Made his debut for France in March 1999, against Ukraine, aged 25. Currently playing for Paris St-Germain, Dhorasoo has 15 France caps and has scored 1 goal for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: October 10, 1973
Height: 1.68m (5ft 5in)
Fact: Dhorasoo was named Best Player of Ligue 1 in 2003-2004, after scoring 4 goals in 31 for his former club Lyon, which helped them to win the French league.

Florent Malouda
Made his debut for France in November 2004, against Poland, aged 24. Currently playing for Lyon, Malouda has 10 France caps and has scored 1 goal for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: June 13, 1980
Height: 1.81m (5ft 11in)
Fact: French Guiana-born Malouda was reported to be a potential signing for Manchester United and Inter Milan at the end of the 2004-2005 season, but he opted to stay in France to boost his chances of selection ahead of this summer's World Cup.

Strikers

Thierry Henry
Made his debut for France on October 11, 1997, against South Africa, aged 20. Currently playing for Arsenal, Henry has 76 France caps and has scored 31 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: August 17, 1977
Height: 1.88m (6ft 2 in)
Fact: Thierry Henry won the Golden Boot for being the Premiership's top scorer in 2002, 2004, and 2005 and was named PFA Players' Player of the Year in 2003 and 2004.

Louis Saha
Made his debut for France on February 18, 2004, against Belgium, aged 25. Currently playing for Manchester United, Saha has 8 France caps and has scored 2 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: August 8, 1978
Height: 1.81m (5ft 11in)
Fact: Saha was named Nationwide Player of the Year in 2000—his first season at Fulham—after scoring an impressive 32 goals.

Franck Ribery
Currently playing for Olympique Marseille, Ribery is yet to make his senior international debut, although he was a reulgar for the U21 side (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: April 1, 1983
Height: 1.70m (5ft 7in)
Fact: The youngest member of the squad, Ribery spent the half of the 2004-2005 season on loan at Turkish club Galatasaray; he scored for France's U21 side in their 2-1 victory over England last November.

Sylvain Wiltord
Made his debut for France on February 10, 1999, against England, aged 24. Currently playing for Olympique Lyonnais, Wiltord has 77 France caps and has scored 25 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: May 10, 1974
Height: 1.74m (5ft 9in)
Fact: Wiltord scored a vital equalizer for his country in the 94th minute of the final of the European Championships, against Italy in 2000—France went on to win the match in extra time and were crowned champions of Europe.

David Trézéguet
Made his debut for France in January 1998, against Spain, aged 20. Currently playing for Juventus, Trézéguet has 61 France caps and has scored 31 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: October 15, 1977
Height: 1.87m (6ft)
Fact: Trézéguet was named French Young Footballer of the Year in 1998, with 18 goals in 27 games for AC Monaco. In 2002, at the end of his second season with Italian giants Juventus, he was named Serie A Footballer of the Year and also ended the season as the Italian league's top scorer with 24 goals in 34 games.

Sidney Govou
Made his debut for France in August 2002, against Tunisia, aged 23. Currently playing for Olympique Lyonnais, Govou has 19 France caps and has scored 3 goals for his country (as at March 1, 2006).
Date of birth: July 27, 1979
Height: 1.75m (5ft 9in)
Fact: Govou has spent his entire professional career with Lyon, winning the French league in five consecutive seasons (from 2001-2002 to 2005-2006).