Arsenal will receive bad news this morning when FIFA rules that France can take as many players as they like from Highbury for their contentious friendly in Australia on Sunday week. The France coach Roger Lemerre will name his squad today and Arsenal fear that Patrick Vieira, Sylvain Wiltord, Robert Pires and Thierry Henry will all be asked to make the 46-hour round trip to Melbourne.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will be dismayed as he regards the travel as "madness" for a friendly. France are due to fly out a week today and return a few days before Arsenal's game at Tottenham on November 17th. The players will not miss any club fixtures.

Vieira and Henry, like Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Lauren, have been left at home for tonight's game at Schalke. Wenger has rested them because there is nothing riding on the match for Arsenal, who have reached the second phase but cannot overhaul the group leaders Panathinaikos.

Wiltord will start up front with Nwankwo Kanu. Kanu, available in the summer, is suddenly indispensible in Europe, with Francis Jeffers injured - Wenger said he did not know for how long - and Dennis Bergkamp unwilling to fly. The manager stressed the Nigerian was no longer for sale.