Pires not frozen out of French squad

France coach Raymond Domenech has insisted that the door is still open for Arsenal star Robert Pires to return to the national team fold.

Pires was left out of the France squad for the friendly match against Poland in November after fiercely criticising Domenech, who took over as Les Bleus boss following Euro 2004.

The midfielder also incurred a €50,000 fine for wearing Puma clothing on television in the same month – a move which greatly angered the French Federation officials and team sponsors Adidas.

However Domenech claims that he does not hold a grudge against Pires.

“There is no reason why Robert cannot come back into the France team,” Domenech told l’Equipe on Tuesday.

“I do not have a black list. When you are a coach, you cannot ban a player for these reasons. I only judge a player on his performances.

“The most important thing for a coach like me is to build a squad after Euro 2004 in the present, and not worry about what has happened in the past.”