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Another roster announcement, another Liverpool player in line for a trip to Brazil. Mamadou Sakho has been named to France's 30-man provisional roster by Didier Deschamps. The central defender had an excellent season after being brought to England by Liverpool, and despite fears by some that playing time lost to injury might cost Sakho his roster spot, Deschamps couldn't look past the player who scored a brace against Ukraine to help France win their qualification playoff.
Sakho played 19 matches in all competitions for Liverpool this season, putting in one strong performance after another once he got settled in to the squad and his role in defense. He only scored one goal this season, against West Ham, but he was a constant terror in the air on set pieces at both ends of the pitch. Given a relatively light competition for places at center back and his ability to play left back in a pinch, Sakho should be a near-lock to make the final 23-man roster once it's announced on June 2nd.
What might be more notable for the French roster isn't so much as who's on it, but who's not. Both Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri were left off, with Deschamps implying that Nasri's attitude was to blame for his exclusion in today's announcement press conference. Nasri is France's most important playmaker, and given France's issues at left back, leaving out their best left back in Clichy is a shock.
France's issues aside, I'm sure all of us wish the best of luck to Sakho in making the roster and putting in top-shelf performances in Brazil. Go put on a show, Mamadou.
