France will go to the World Cup without Karim Benzema after coach Raymond Domenech decided to omit the Real Madrid forward in favour of Toulouse striker Andre-Pierre Gignac and Panathinaikos goal-getter Djibril Cisse when he announced his 30-man squad for South Africa on TF1 on Tuesday evening.

Domenech was expected to announce his final 23-man party, but his first surprise was to instead announce a panel of 30 players that will need to be trimmed before the World Cup begins on June 11.

While notable figures such as Manchester City’s Patrick Vieira, Sevilla’s Julien Escude and Arsenal’s Samir Nasri failed to make the cut, the typically enigmatic Domenech elected to name a host of wildcard faces in his squad. Stade Rennais teenager Yann M’Vila and Olympique de Marseille’s Mathieu Valbuena, neither of whom has previously earned international recognition at senior level, were two of the most eyebrow raising inclusions.

Valbuena’s OM team-mate Hatem Ben Arfa has made the cut, despite finding himself increasingly playing the role of substitute at Stade Velodrome after a bright start to 2010, while Rennes forward Jimmy Briand has been rewarded for a fine conclusion to the campaign by being named in the 30.

Notably, ‘Dom’ has also included four goalkeepers in the squad, meaning that one, probable either Cedric Carrasso of Girondins de Bordeaux or the recalled Mickael Landreau of Lille, will be axed from the team that will travel to South Africa.