Lyon players face late call on Martinique friendly
PARIS, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Olympique Lyon coach Gerard Houllier will decide just three days before France's friendly against Costa Rica next week whether he will let his players fly to Martinique.
'We have nine players who are likely to be picked for the game. And as the chosen date does not make the selection compulsory, I will discuss the matter with Gerard Houllier and the players,' Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas said on Monday. 'And as we have a league game three days before, it is logical we wait until then to decide. And Gerard Houllier will make the decision,' he told sports daily L'Equipe. The game will be played on the French-administered Caribbean island of Martinique three days before France face Germany in a friendly in Paris as part of their preparations for the 2006 World Cup finals. FIFA set aside Nov. 12 for international friendlies, which means theoretically the clubs are not obliged to release their players for the Costa Rica game on Nov. 9. 'I know the players want to make this trip. I know for some players, such as Eric Abidal or Sylvain Monsoreau, this game is very important,' he said. The French federation said the Costa Rica match would be a tribute to the families of those from Martinique who died in a plane crash in August. A Colombian jet crashed in Venezuela, killing 160 people including 152 French nationals from Martinique. Abidal was born in the Martinique and Monsoreau, who has a chance to be picked for the first time by coach Raymond Domenech, lost one of his cousins in the crash.
