France's Blanc to replace entire roster

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print

PARIS -- France coach Laurent Blanc will drop all 23 World Cup players for his first match next month as collective punishment for the team's embarrassing fiasco in South Africa.

The French federation said Friday in a statement it had granted Blanc permission to suspend the players at the coach's request.

France was eliminated in the group stage at the World Cup, failing to win a game. The players also refused to train as a protest after Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka was sent home following an expletive-laced tirade at then-coach Raymond Domenech.

Blanc refused to speak to reporters when he left the federation's headquarters Friday.

France plays a friendly against Norway on Aug. 11 in Oslo, and Blanc is set to announce his squad Aug. 5.

France's disappointing performance in South Africa came after the team failed to win a game at the 2008 European Championship, also under Domenech.

The French team endured days of chaos at the World Cup after L'Equipe newspaper published a rant by Anelka aimed toward Domenech at halftime of a 2-0 loss against Mexico, prompting the French federation to send him home.

The next day, the entire squad refused to train in protest and captain Patrice Evra had a lively altercation with the team's fitness coach that was captured on TV.

The events caused an outcry in France, with politicians harshly criticizing the players' attitude, legislators in parliament questioning the coach and even President Nicolas Sarkozy weighing in on the mess.

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print