World Cup 2010: France - What Went Wrong?
France is probably the team in most turmoil in world football right now; how things can change for them from World Cup to World Cup is quite astonishing. In 1998, they won the World Cup; 4 years later, they faced a humiliating exit following a defeat to Senegal (the minnows from Africa) where they did not even manage to score a single goal, and went home from the first round. Flash forward to the next World Cup in 2006, where France narrowly missed out in the final on penalties. And now, 4 years later, they have once again crashed out of the World Cup at the group stage, that too after two embarrassing defeats at the hands of Mexico and South Africa.
Now, predictably, they are under the hammer from the uncompromising French Press - and of course the home fans - for such a shameful display. What really went wrong for them? It is believed that the problems with the team were there way before the World Cup started.
France have been in the headlines one way or the other since the World Cup qualification. They qualified for the World Cup finals on the expense of Ireland, through what was clearly a handball goal by Thierry Henry. From then on, coach Raymond Domenech has been under the hammer for a number of reasons, firstly regarding his approach to the game and his tactics even before the World Cup started. Then came the World Cup squad selection time, where the manager made a number of eyebrows raise when he left out the likes of the young emerging striker Karim Benzema, who is one of the hottest properties in world football right now. Although he did not have the best of seasons with Real Madrid, but cut him some slack; for a man who grew up playing in France, it does take some time to adapt to new surroundings and a new culture of football. Judging him purely on that was simply unfair.
Next was the left footed winger from Arsenal, Samir Nasri. Now that boy can play; he is creative, inventive, and is blessed with pace. Why Raymond left him out is beyond many. And finally in a big event like World Cup, there is always the need for an experienced head, a man who has been there, done that. The only member remaining from the World Cup winning team of 2002, Patrick Vieira (Henry was also part of 2002 final squad but was on the bench) was also overlooked, claiming that he is past his prime now. After all of that, there was a report suggesting that Domenech chose his team with the help of Tarot cards or some Zodiac signs, which enraged his critics even more.
The World Cup itself did not start too well for France: a flat performance against Uruguay earned them a draw, and then came the big one: a 2 nil shock defeat against Mexico, during which Anelka expressed his frustration at half time. Later, the story was somehow leaked to the press, and as a result, the Chelsea striker was sent home. But the problems did not end there. The rest of the squad, who were upset about not being consulted while making that decision, decided to boycott practice the next day, only to resume training the next day after having made their point. All of that meant that in no way was the team ready for a match as big as their last encounter.
And what transpired on the pitch, although shocking for everyone concerned, considering everything that preceded the match, was to some degree on the cards.
Now we have to wait and watch what happens next in the soap opera that is the French football. The French Football Federation has promised an inquiry into the boycott of players once the team gets back. As if the team already did not have enough on their plate after their embarrassing campaign, they will have to brace themselves for more grilling from the Federation.
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