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Distin, an FA Cup winner with Portsmouth in 2008 seemingly has all the right attributes yet has never been talked to by the FFF let alone called up to national duty. In an exclusive interview with The Football Sack Distin revealed his frustrations on being left in the dark;
"Everybody would be happy to play for his country. If you don't there is something wrong."
“I've never been picked up for the national team so far, and neither when I was younger” he said “The reason why I cannot tell you because I've never spoken to anyone and I've never been told so its a big mystery”
A big mystery indeed, especially for a French side that let in more than a goal a match in South Africa not to mention leaking goals heavily to such mighty teams as Austria and Romania in qualification. Distin standing at 1.92 metres, a good turn of pace and just an intimidating feel about him, would be a wonderful addition to any world defence, let alone the struggling French backline. Here's hoping now, with new coach Laurent Blanc in charge, Distin gets a look-in.
Distin is of course in Australia as part of Everton FC's squad, the main attraction for the Everton Down Under Tour. The Barclays Premier League side is playing three matches against local Hyundai A-league sides as the initial part of their pre-season, featuring established stars Tim Cahill, Louis Saha and Mikel Arteta just to name a few.
"I didn't see too much of Sydney, but I really enjoy it. It seems to be a really nice place, everybody is laid back and relaxed, it seems to be a nice place to live" said Distin.
The tour begins when they play Sydney FC on Saturday night which should be a cracker, with Dwight Yorke pulling on the sky blue jersey in a one-off farewell match to the Harbour City. Dwight has already stated that he wont be holding back and even though its just a friendly he's “coming here to give my best obviously, because I'm competitive like that.”
Everton Down Under then continues on Wednesday, with the Melbourne Heart playing their first ever high profile match. This match will be as much about Heart showing how they're progressing as a new club as it is about Everton. All eyes will be on the battle between former Socceroo team mates Cahill and John Aloisi, as well as the Heart as a whole, seeing how well they have gelled under illustrious coach John van't Schip.
The Toffee's then wrap up their Tour Down Under, featuring in Brisbane Roar's annual 'Roar against Racism' match. This is a marvellous concept by the Roar, who raise awareness and encourage the stamping out of racism by playing a high profile team every pre-season. Notable clubs to have played in the fixture include Celtic, Palmeiras and Supersport United. The high profile of Everton FC should help to attract other clubs of their stature to fixtures such as this in the future.
Tickets are still available for all three matches, so if you feel like watching Distin, Cahill and co strut their stuff its not too late. Purchase a ticket today to a match you will never forget, available from Ticketek (Sydney and Brisbane) and Ticketmaster (Melbourne).
Also, the full interview with Sylvain Distin as well as Leighton Baines is available right here.