Desailly maintains frosty silence

The France captain Marcel Desailly has refused to follow Jacques Santini's lead and make the national team more media-friendly. Santini made clear his intention to thaw the frosty relations between Les Bleus and the press when he announced his 22-man squad on Monday to face Tunisia – his first game since taking over from Roger Lemerre.

But the Chelsea defender, whose captaincy was questioned during France's disastrous World Cup defence, refused to comment on Santini's squad which saw a number of new faces drafted in.

"I have nothing to say about it," Desailly said. "I will not talk to the press any more and I will keep my comments for my website only. I have another two years before I retire and I want to make the most of it." Unfortunately for fans of France, Desailly's personal website has not been updated since 19 July.

Santini will confirm ahead of their game in Tunis next Wednesday whether the 33-year-old will still wear the armband. Even if he retains the honour, Desailly insisted he will "only speak to the media just before and after the games".

The Liverpool midfielder Bruno Cheyrou, revealed his surprise at winning a France call-up after the early years of his career. "My career has been quite atypical so far," he said. "I was even chucked out of Lens' training centre, but this is part of the past and the most important cap now has come. It is only coming a little bit earlier than planned."

Cheyrou joined Liverpool in June after four successful seasons with Lille. "On Saturday I was told that Jacques Santini was in the same hotel as us in Cardiff," added Cheyrou. "He met Gérard Houllier and they spoke about me. Then Gérard told me I had a good chance to be called up. This is pure happiness for me, I am experiencing the best summer of my life."