LONDON , England -- French Euro 2008 qualification hopes were dealt a blow on Monday when Bolton striker Nicolas Anelka was ruled out of the critical midweek qualifier against Lithuania in Nantes . Bolton striker Anelka celebrates his goal in Saturday 's 6-0 victory against the Faroe Islands . Anelka , who has hit 11 goals in 42 international appearances , suffered a thigh injury in Saturday 's 6-0 thrashing of the Faroe Islands and has returned to his English Premier League club for treatment . France must win their final two Group B games -- they complete their program away to Ukraine on November 21 -- if they are to be sure of a place in next year 's finals to be jointly hosted by Austria and Switzerland . Les Bleus are currently in third place one point behind Italy and two points adrift of group leaders Scotland who play in Georgia on Wednesday . The Italians play in Scotland on November 17 and complete their fixtures at home to the Faroe Islands four days later . France , meanwhile , are also without five-cap Sevilla defender Julien Escude who has failed to recover from an injury suffered before the weekend win . E-mail to a friend .
France striker Nicolas Anelka will miss midweek Euro tie against Lithuania . Seville defender Julien Escude also injured for vital qualifying tie in Nantes . TL;DR