So the question on everyone’s lips at the moment seems to be about England’s ‘worries’ after their embarrassing 0-0 draw with Algeria, but a glance across to the French camp and things look a whole lot more troubled for the great footballing nation.
Today during the New Zealand v Italy clash reports broke that the French side had refused to train today after an on pitch argument/fight between the players and management team over the decision to send star striker Nicolas Anelka home yesterday after a dispute between himself and out going manager Raymond Domenech.
The decision to send Anelka home came after France’s shocking display against Mexico after the striker reportedly voiced his opinion against Domenech at half time in the eventual 2-0 defeat which leaves the 1998 champions of the brink of elimination.
Patrice Evra after the game labelled the whole campaign as ‘Catastrophic’, a word I would describe as an understatement. ‘Disgraceful’ seems a more appropriate. For France there seems very little chance of progressing to the next phase of this World Cup and you can’t help but have a little chuckle to yourself after the disgraceful way they reached the finals.
Thierry Henry’s handball in the lead up to the vital goal against the Republic of Ireland in the play-off was inexcusable and the goal should never have been allowed to stand, let alone for France to make the finals thanks to it, a decision Henry maybe regretting as he has played little part in this campaign.
As a nation France has always been seen as a huge footballing country and they won the World Cup just 12 years ago in their country, something that now looks a million miles away. A further blow to the already despairing French fans is that it is believed that Nicolas Anelka has since retired from international football.
So is there any hope for this nation that currently finds themselves in the footballing wilderness? Well yes. After the tournament, presumably Tuesday for France, current manager Raymond Domenech is leaving the post and will be replaced by former Manchester United defender Laurent Blanc and he may just be regretting the decision to accept the job after this latest episode
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