Lassana Diarra misses France training again
TIGNES - Lassana Diarra, struggling to adapt to altitude, missed training for the second day running at France's pre-World Cup camp in the French Alps on Friday.
The holding midfielder had not trained on Thursday because he felt unwell during a hike up one of Europe's largest glaciers overlooking this scenic ski village.
"He has stomach pain due to altitude," said a team spokesman, explaining why the Real Madrid player could not train on Friday either.
Also missing was Florent Malouda, who has left the camp to be with his wife, expecting their fourth child.
The Chelsea winger was granted permission to go to London and should be back in Tignes on Sunday, the spokesman said.
Defender Sebastien Squillaci trained for just a few minutes and was then allowed to rest, two days after helping Sevilla claim the Spanish King's Cup with a 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid.
Centre back William Gallas, who kicked a ball for the first time since late March on Thursday, took part in the full session, raising hopes he would be able to play in the June 11-July 11 finals in South Africa.
Coach Raymond Domenech picked a provisional 24-man squad instead of the official 23 because Gallas is recovering from a recurrence of a left calf muscle injury that has kept him on the sidelines for nearly two months. Domenech has until June 1 to name his squad of 23.
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The three goalkeepers in the squad - Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda and Cedric Carrasso - did not train on Friday, playing tennis instead.
France will play friendlies against Costa Rica, Tunisia and China before flying to the World Cup, where they will face South Africa, Mexico and Uruguay in Group A.