France once again failed to score a goal in their second World Cup game, this time against Mexico. The French team, very much like it was the case in the first game against Uruguay, lacked a cutting edge and rarely threatened. They started the game brightly but soon sunk back to the leaden-footed pace that had marked their midfield play in their opening game. The midfield was static and the players seemed out of ideas during large spells of the game. France failed to take the game by the scruff of the neck and Mexico took full advantage of their attacking impotency. But does the talented France squad really deserve all the blame for the poor start to their World Cup campaign?
I believe that the answer is ultimately no. Yes the team as a whole is an impressive alignment of players but has Domenech really chosen the best possible squad for this World Cup campaign. The omissions of talented forwards such as Nasri and Benzema were the surprises when Domenech announced his final 23-men squad. Instead Domenech opted for the likes of Valbuena and Andre-Pierre Gignac. The former only got into Deschamps’ squad towards the end of Marseille’s Ligue 1 campaign this year, whilst the latter seems to have been picked for his goal-scoring exploits from a couple seasons ago as he struggled for form this year. The suspicion is that Benzema and Nasri were liabilities and their presence would prove destabilizing to the squad unity. As a result, for the “good” of the team, they were ruthlessly axed from Domenech’s World Cup squad.
Domenech only made one change to his lineup for the game against Mexico. Malouda was included and Gourcuff was left on the bench. Abidal remained Gallas’ partner in defense, as both Anelka and Govou retained their roles in the starting 11. Ribery was played through the middle while Malouda operated on his customary left flank. The former three had mostly been ineffective and sub-par in the opener against Uruguay, and the thought was that the inclusion of Malouda would spark the French into victory. The reality is that it only imbalanced the attack. The inclusion of Malouda, Ribery, and Anelka in the same lineup led to all three getting in each other’s way and not being able to link up effectively as a result. All three enjoy drifting towards the left-hand side and coming inside from it. Ribery plays on the left for Bayern München, same for Malouda at Chelsea, and until his move to Chelsea - where Malouda’s presence has forced him to play on the right – so did Anelka. Thus it begs the question, what was Domenech thinking and even more importantly, why did he not make a change when things were so evidently not working.
The first change came at half-time when André-Pierre Gignac came in for Anelka. The substitution, if reports are indeed true, came not as a tactical reshuffling but because of a spat between Domenech and Anelka. The Chelsea striker had apparently lashed out at his manager after the latter criticized his first half performance. Beyond this however, Domenech made no change, despite Mexico being out in front and dominating the play. Henry, France’s top scorer, never even got his orders to warm up.
Domenech’s refusal to make further substitutions only highlighted the fact that he just no longer cares. The camera often glided over him during the game and the French coach simply looked disinterested and ponderous. True enough, Domenech’s tactical choices were not the best. The French coach seems to show favoritism to the players he coached while he was the France U-21 coach (Anelka, Govou, Gourcuff, Malouda, Abidal, etc to name some), as much of his squad and starting 11 selections might hint at that. Also his penchant for the mystic (does not pick anyone whose astrological sign is Scorpio) undermines the validity of much of his decision-making. Lastly, this France squad – not wanting to get too much into conspiracy theories – is also the product of some lobbying from Michel Platini. But the fact remains that the France Football Federation (FFF) holds some responsibility for this. Announcing Domenech’s sacking and replacement just before the tournament had even started was a foolish decision and nothing short of sabotage. The French fans have thus been let down by not only Domenech’s poor tactical choices but also the FFF’s poor timing and managing of the situation. Now France faces an uphill battle to qualify for the knockout stages. At this point though I fear, all we have to look forward to and hope for is a more successful reign under Laurent Blanc.
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