France won the European Championship in July, becoming the first team to claim the European title two years after taking the World Cup. It now sets its sights on the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, where it will attempt to become the first European team in 64 years to repeat as World Cup champion.
France, not two without three?
French national team coach Roger Lemerre loses his two inspirational leaders, captain Didier Deschamps and center back Laurent Blanc, to international retirement.
But letÆs not fool ourselves.
France has more than enough talent to win the 2002 World Cup, two years after winning the European Championship and four years after taking the 1998 World Cup title.
Pas deux sans trois?
GOALKEEPER. Fabien Barthez is the epitome of the modern keeper, quick off his line and a factor on his restarts, as Italy learned to its detriment in the Euro 2000 final. Behind him is a long line of young keepers. The best: Mickael Landreau (Nantes), 21, and Sebastien Frey (Inter Milan), 20.
OUTSIDE BACKS. Lilian Thuram and Bixente Lizarazu complement each other, the lanky Thuram on the right side and the feisty Lizarazu operating on the left wing. ThuramÆs natural position is in the middle, though; he may be moved there in 2002. Lizarazu will be 32 in 2002 and has a history of injuries. Alternatives: Willy Sagnol (Bayern Munich), on the right, and Vincent Candela (Roma), a holdover from 1998, on the left.
CENTER BACKS. France never lost an official match with Thuram, Lizarazu, Blanc and center back Marcel Desailly on the backline. LemerreÆs first choice to replace Blanc is Frank Leboeuf, who shut down Ronaldo in the 1998 World Cup final when Blanc was suspended. Unfortunately, Leboeuf will be 34 in 2002. Thuram would like to move back into the middle, but he prefers a three-man system like he plays at Parma. A name for the future: Auxerre sweeper Philippe Mexes, only 18.
DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS. Lemerre alternated between a 4-3-1-2 and a 4-2-3-1, choosing between two and three bloqueurs like his predecessor, Aime Jacquet, preferred. Des-champsÆ departure decreases LemerreÆs options. Emmanuel Petit is unsettled at Barcelona, but Lemerre will keep him in the lineup. Loyalty means a lot to Lemerre. Patrick Vieira, the revelation of Euro 2000, has a reputation in England for being a hothead, but the English grudgingly praise his work rate, physical strength and passing ability. Hopes for the future: PSG youngsters Peter Luccin and Stephane Dalmat, both 21.
PLAYMAKER. Zinedine Zidane, the 2000 World Player of the Year, is a rare commodity these days, a true playmaker. The pressure will be on him to take a more active role in team affairs. HeÆs not the vocal leader that Deschamps or Blanc was.
ATTACKING MIDFIELDERS. Le-mer-re often used two attacking midfielders ù you could also call them withdrawn forwards ù in support of Zidane at Euro 2000. Youri Djorkaeff, 32, showed his value, scoring the winning goals against the Czech Republic and Spain at Euro 2000. Christophe Dugarry is a controversial figure, ZidaneÆs best buddy, hated by most French fans and inconsistent to boot. Like elsewhere, Lemerre has great depth. Robert Pires set up the golden goal to win Euro 2000. Johan Micoud had a break-out game in FranceÆs most recent outing, a 4-0 win over Turkey in Istanbul.
STRIKERS. With the possible exception of Argentina, no country has the depth up front like France has.
ItÆs quite a quartet: Thierry Henry, David Trezeguet, Nicolas Anelka and Sylvain Wiltord.
Henry has emerged as arguably the top striker in Europe, able to play in the middle as he does at Arsenal or on the outside, where he terrorized defenses at Euro 2000.
Anelka remains an enigma. He recovered from his suspension to help Real Madrid win the Champions League but was a disappointment at Euro 2000.
Trezeguet? All he did was win Euro 2000 with his golden goal.
And Wiltord? Supersub II instigated the penalty that decided the semifinal against Portugal and scored the equalizer in the final.
by Soccer America managing editor Paul Kennedy