Player Profile - Alou Diarra

The 24-year-old's time with the national side may now have come as Vieira struggles to recapture the form which made him such a huge success at Arsenal.

"When I saw him for the first time, I though it was Patrick Vieira's twin."
Raymond Domenech

He possesses a similar commanding presence to Vieira and Domenech has compared their playing styles, praising Diarra's pace and energy and saying he has the greater heading ability of the two.

Diarra began his career with Louhans-Cuiseaux before moving to Bayern Munich, where he failed to break into the first team.

Former Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier took the raw 20-year-old to Anfield in 2002, but he never played a game in England, instead being sent out on loan to Le Havre and then Lens.

At Lens he blossomed into an important first team player and was later named captain. He completed a permanent move to the Stade Felix Bollaert in the summer of 2005, signing a four-year deal.

He also earned his first call into the national squad from Domenech, his former coach with the Under-21s.

He made his competitive debut for France in the World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland in Paris and went on to play in three further group matches.