France
Seeds of doubt
rance’s qualification for the finals wasn’t without its hiccups – notably, the home defeat by Scotland – but in general the fans pronounced themselves satisfied with coach Raymond Domenech’s handling of the campaign. Now, as the tournament approaches, a sense of unease about Les Bleus’ chances of success has started to take hold.
Some of these doubts have been sown by the team’s stuttering performances in their four most recent games. Although France lost only one of them – 1-0 away to Spain in February – they haven’t played with anything approaching the cohesion and fluidity shown in the 2-0
win against Lithuania in the penultimate qualifier last October.
But the biggest concern by far is about the uncertain form of a number of key players. Patrick Vieira, for so long the engine of the side, has had a wretched time with injuries at Internazionale, and when he has played has often looked a pale shadow of his former imperious self. Willy Sagnol, France’s Mr Reliable at right-back, has been out for seven months, and keeper Gregory Coupet returned to action only in January after five months out with a knee ligament injury. Forward Thierry Henry has not shone all that brightly in his first season at Barcelona and has been positively lethargic in national team colours. Barcelona team-mate Lilian Thuram has hardly featured at club level, and it has been a similar story for Florent Malouda at his new club, Chelsea.
But it’s not all bad news. Playmaker Franck Ribery has been in scintillating form for Bayern Munich and inspirational in the national side, Claude Makelele continues to defy the years and offers the ultimate in security in front of the defence, and Lyon defensive midfielder Jeremy Toulalan looks to be a real class act. Also, any side that boasts either Nicolas Anelka or wonderkid Karim Benzema in its starting line-up will pose an attacking threat.
Formidable
Add in the fact that Domenech’s side have conceded an average of just 0.48 goals a game since the summer of 2004 and it’s clear that whatever their worries, the 2006 World Cup runners-up will still make for formidable opponents.
Of course, two years ago in Germany, Domenech had Zinedine Zidane in his ranks – what side wouldn’t feel the loss of the
world’s best player? But there are still three more friendlies left – against Ecuador, Paraguay and Colombia – for France to find some cohesion. It would be foolish to bet against a country that has such strength in depth that such players as Bakary Sagna and Mathieu Flamini shouldn’t be altogether surprised if they fail to make the final 23.
Interview with France coach Raymond Domenech
Interview with France's Franck Ribery
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