Ben Arfa and Sakho miss out on France squad for Euros

France coach Didier Deschamps has picked seasoned striker Olivier Giroud for his 23-man squad for Euro 2016, which France will host, naming in-form forward Hatem Ben Arfa only as a reserve.

Giroud, recovering from a lean spell at Arsenal with a strong finish to the Premier League season, is one of six strikers in the squad, alongside Antoine Griezmann, Dimitri Payet, Antony Martial, Kingsley Coman, and Andre-Pierre Gignac.

Karim Benzema will miss the June 10-July 10 tournament after a ban for his involvement in an alleged blackmail scandal was upheld by the French federation last month. The Real Madrid forward was suspended indefinitely last December after being put under formal investigation by a judge for alleged blackmail over a sex video involving France team-mate Mathieu Valbuena, who was also left out of the squad.