French players shocked before Bafana match
French shocked before Bafana match
Posted: 2010-06-23 10:14
The French Football Association has really put the boot into their national team by telling them before the crucial match against Bafana Bafana yesterday that they would be going home in economy class.
Florent Malouda, one of Les Bleu's better players in France's disastrous campaign, says this disclosure by minister for sport Roselyne Bachelot before their match against left him and others stunned.
Bachelot, who was asked to intervene as relations between players, coach and officials deteriorated over the weekend, asked the team before the match: "How would you like people to remember you? What image do you want to leave behind? It's your kids, our children, for whom perhaps you will no longer be heroes. It is the dreams of your partners, your friends, your fans that you have perhaps broken. You have tarnished the image of France."
Malouda, who scored France's consolation goal in the 2-1 defeat to the hosts, said: "I have never been a boxer but it was like you have been knocked out. It was a complete disaster because we chose to express ourselves like this. We didn't know it would affect so many people. Honestly.
"There are no bad guys. I heard things like we were acting like gang leaders or something like that. Everybody, all the players, agreed to act like this and everybody said that we would take responsibility for what comes.
"We are really sorry for the French population, the French fans - that's now what we want to show. That's not what we want people to think about France."
Meanwhile French politicians, who are looking for a further scapegoat, are blaming England for their early exit from the World Cup.
The politicians are pointing a finger at the number of their players earning their money in the English Premiership.
"It's all about individualism, egotism and everyone for themselves," said the Socialist Party's Jerome Cahuzac, adding: "All that really matters is the size of the cheque."
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