June, 2010...France begins their quest for the World Cup trophy. They limp to a 0-0 draw with Uruguay and the world predicts nothing will come of their trip to South Africa.
What a difference four years make. The French national team's performance against Uruguay was to say the least uninspiring. A few sparks of life (Gourcuff's fantastic freekick), but otherwise an unforgettable performance. Pourquoi?
A day after that disastrous performance more information is leaking from the sieve that is the French NT camp. Holed up in the most expensive digs in South Africa, the FFF are being, for lack of a better word, pissy.
Patrice Evra, who was given the captain's armband by manager Raymond Domenech, confirmed in a strange press conference that Yoann Gourcuff has separated himself from the team and they want his head. If, in Evra's words, one wanted to talk to Yoann they would first have to go through Jeremy Toulalan (teammate and friend of Gourcuff's).
If this new revelation weren't bad enough, apparently the team are selectively passing to each other (and not to Gourcuff). Upset with Domenech's insistence on playing the young Bordeaux player with Sidney Govou instead of Thierry Henry and Abou Diaby, the likes of Franck Ribery and Nicolas Anelka have decided not to pass to Gourcuff and Govou. *shaking head*
So...basically the two worst players on the pitch yesterday (Ribery and Anelka) were trying to make things worse for a player who was selected by their manager (loose terminology here) all the while cementing their demise with their selfish, inept play.
Barcelona defender Eric Abidal gave an indication of the problems facing the French national side when he told reporters: “We can try and put our ideas together and try and find a middle ground, but the manager decides.”
*dramatic pause*
It's ironic that Gourcuff was one of the best players on the pitch during the Uruguay match. He was trying to put something together as an attacking mid, but it didn't seem to connect with Anelka and Ribery...A HA! Gourcuff's corners are superb, and when Malouda came on for him his corners could be best described as pathétique, inefficace et sans valeur. Even the color commentator said, "that was horrible...just horrible."
What is different about these 2010 Bleus versus their counterparts from 2006? One name.....Zinedine Zidane. Many have said that Zidane basically took on the world with his play in 2006, which ultimately led to a second-place finish (after a most unfortunate run-in with an Italian moron, who shall not be named here). At first I thought, "oh come on, someone can't play by himself!" But after seeing these idiots struggling to qualify out of a nothing group, and only doing so after FIFA helped them along by pairing them against a "lesser" squad (that played harder than they did), it's evident that the "lone Zidane" theory may be spot on!
Let's not forget that France wouldn't even be IN this World Cup had it not been for the "hand of Gaul" by Thierry Henry in the waning moments of their second qualifying tie against Ireland.
The puzzle that is this "Monet" of a footy team (great from a distance but a big mess up close), is beginning to take shape and show a distasteful portrait of a once-great side. Infighting will ultimately be their downfall. They don't have Zidane to take them by the scruff of the neck and tell them to play. Their manager is a fool and does not have the skills to keep them together. He already knows he won't be back after the WC, as former Bordeaux manager Laurent Blanc will be stepping in to the NT position (I wish he had done that BEFORE the Cup). Blanc is a no-nonsense manager and would not take the pissy attitudes of Thierry "handball" Henry, Franck Ribery, Nicolas Anelka, and Florent Malouda (the last two playing for C-Club...figures).
Wake up, France! You're playing in the World Cup before millions of people worldwide!
Zut Alors!
I think he's saying, "Susana, get me off this bus!"
Yoann during a press conference
More Yoann
:)
How can you not want to have this man's babies!!!!??????? :)
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