The return of Les Miserables

France’s ‘1987 Generation’, so-called after the year of their birth, had been tipped to lead Les Bleus to a repeat of the team’s success at Euro 2000.

Instead, the current squad have more in common with the ‘enfants terribles’ of France’s embarrassing 2010 World Cup campaign after it emerged that four players could face bans from international football for their behaviour at Euro 2012.

The French football federation has set up an internal disciplinary committee which will meet next Tuesday to rule on the international futures of Samir Nasri, Jeremy Menez, Hatem Ben Arfa and Yann M’Vila.