Blanc drops entire W.Cup squad for Norway game

New France coach Laurent Blanc Friday requested that no member of the 23-man squad who played in their disastrous World Cup campaign be called up for a friendly against Norway on August 11 in Oslo.

Blanc, in his first game since taking over from Raymond Domenech, made his request to the French Football Federation’s (FFF) federal council who accepted the proposal, the FFF said in a statement.

France failed to win any of their three first round games and scored only once in what had been considered a fairly easy group, in a campaign marked by bitter team infighting and a one-day training strike by the players.