Patrick Vieira s international career appears to be over after he was omitted from the 30-man provisional World Cup squad announced by France coach Raymond Domenech on Tuesday.
Vieira, the former captain and a World Cup winner in 1998, joined Manchester City from Inter Milan in January in a bid to prove his fitness after struggling with injuries in recent seasons.
He will not be given a chance to add to his 107 caps in South Africa though, and Domenech revealed the decision not to choose him had been a difficult one.
We talked about this for a long time, said the France coach.
I had to judge him on the professional side. It is a very emotional decision.
Vieira said he accepted Domenech s choice but admitted to feeling aggrieved that he had not been contacted personally.
I still feel in good shape. I m not questioning this list. I respect his choice, Vieira told Infosport.
I would have accepted it more easily if he d called me yesterday (Monday) rather than learning about it like that. That s what hurt.
Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema was the other high-profile player to miss out, barely 10 months after his 35 million euro transfer from Lyon.
Striker Djibril Cisse received his first call-up since being cut from France s squad prior to the 2008 European Championship, after netting 29 goals this season for Greek champions Panathinaikos.
There were also first call-ups for 25-year-old Marseille winger Mathieu Valbuena and 28-year-old Bordeaux centre-back Marc Planus, and a surprise selection for 19-year-old Rennes midfielder Yann M Vila.
It s a surprise for me, a huge surprise, M Vila, a France Under-21 international, told RTL.
Personally it s a dream to play at a World Cup. It s a big surprise to be in the 30. Why not make the 23?
Domenech revealed his provisional squad live on French television channel TF1 s main evening news programme, having earlier indicated that he would be naming his final 23-man squad for the June 11-July 11 tournament.
There is a team and there are those who will come alongside, said Domenech. They have to bring something; a bit of freshness, a bit of calmness, a bit of aggressiveness. Each in their own way can bring a little extra.
It is a sign for them that they are on the right path.
The 30-man list will have to be trimmed to 23 by June 1, 10 days prior to France s opening match with Uruguay in Group A.
Mexico and hosts South Africa are France s other group stage opponents.
Provisional France squad:
Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux), Mickael Landreau (Lille)
Defenders: William Gallas (Arsenal/ENG), Eric Abidal (Barcelona/ESP), Bakary Sagna (Arsenal/ENG), Patrice Evra (Manchester United/ENG), Rod Fanni (Rennes), Gael Clichy (Arsenal/ENG), Marc Planus (Bordeaux), Anthony Reveillere (Lyon), Adil Rami (Lille), Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla/ESP)
Midfielders: Abou Diaby (Arsenal/ENG), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid/ESP), Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux), Yann Mvila (Rennes), Florent Malouda (Chelsea/ENG), Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon)
Forwards: Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea/ENG), Hatem Ben Arfa (Marseille), Jimmy Briand (Rennes), Djibril Cisse (Panathinaikos/GRE), Andre-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse), Sidney Govou (Lyon), Thierry Henry (Barcelona/ESP), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich/GER), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille)
