Major crisis for the French at the World Cup.
Background:
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Last Thursday France suffered a 2-0 loss to Mexico. One of the French players, Nicolas Anelka, allegedly lost it on his coach, telling him to "go screw yourself, dirty son of a whore." After refusing to apologize, Anelka was kicked off the team.
The latest:
Today, the rest of the players refused to practice to show their support of the banished Anelka. Patrice Evra, France's captain, got in a heated argument with one of the coaches, and led the team off the field and onto their bus.
The fallout:
The French Football Federation (FFF), the organization that is in charge of the team and who made the decision to send Anelka home, has called this "unacceptable behaviour" and said that "French football is in a catastrophic situation." French President Nicolas Sarkozy has apparently been appraised of the situation, and there will surely be some consequences for the players.
Meanwhile, they have a game to play Tuesday against South Africa. They have to win (and the other remaining game in their group - Mexico vs. Uruguay - cannot end in a draw), or the French will not advance to the next round. Don't forget that in the last World Cup France came in second overall, so this early of an exit would be devastating.
Nicolas Anelka: the French player who was sent home for insulting his coach
Raymond Domenech: France's coach
Patrice Evra: French player (and the team's captain)
Irish fans are probably seeing some justice in this, as their team narrowly missed qualifying for the World Cup after a controversial game with France. In that game, a French player hit the ball with his hand twice (which, just in case you weren't sure, is a big no-no) right before his teammate scored a goal. The ref didn't see it, and the goal stood. Irish fans thus feel that France cheated their way into the tournament.
Things will probably get worse for the French before they get better, so stay tuned for more name-calling, shoving, and sulking! Allons-y!
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