Domenech's replacement announced...but for post World Cup

So Escalettes has announced that the successor for Domenech. Too bad it is for after the World Cup instead of immediately...so who are the candidates? Blanc, Deschamps, Boghossian and Tigana. No surprises in the list. In addition Guy Roux and Arsene Wenger were included - both are long shots. Roux had been approached after the 1998 World Cup to run the team but declined. Wenger has always stated he rather stay at the club level and work with players daily - plus he could not go out and buy all the best talent from clubs' academies! What about the other 4 candidates...

Laurent Blanc - the head man for Bordeaux is clearly the darling manager of French football. With rumors of Manchester United in his future as well as the idea of him taking over the French national team on a part time basis (this rumor made the rounds after Domenech was pressured to leave post Ireland match) he being placed on the list is no surprise. Blanc is also part of the 98ers and carries a large amount of cache with the French public and footballing community. He has the credentials for the role, but might not have the length of services as some of the other candidates - having only managed since 2007. However I still think it is his job to lose. Odds - 2 to 1. My favorite Laurent Blanc moment -



Didier Deschamps - he used to be the darling of manager of French football, having managed Monaco to a Champions League final. His personal trophy case is nothing short of amazing - World Cup and European Cup champion, captained both winners, youngest captain to lift the Champions League with Marseilles (he won it again with Juventus), he won domestic titles in France and Italy as well as domestic cups. As a manager he led Monaco to a Champions League finals, won a domestic cup with Monaco and managed Juventus to a Serie B title. He has been managing since 2001 so more experience than his teammate Blanc. The fact he has managed in France and Italy should make him someone worth giving serious consideration, in addition he was the France skipper demonstrating the respect he commands. I think he might be the best candidate for the role - he has expressed strong interest, has the pedigree and the experience. 4 years ago he would be the clear favorite. Odds - 5 to 1

Alain Boghossian - the current assistant national team manager, many thought he was brought in to satisfy the 98ers...oh yeah he too has a World Cup winner's medal from 1998. He was a bit of a surprise when he was tapped to be an assistant manager since he had no previous experience as a manager - somewhat of a safe move for the FFF - bring in a member of the 1998 squad but one that never expressed ambition to manage the national side. It is hard to assess his impact on the squad or his ability as a coach. I think he has been mentioned on the short list...because he has to be...but I think he is the long shot of the 4. Odds - 20 to 1.

Jean Tigana - one of my favorite all time players, he was part of the "Carre Magique" from the 1980s with Platini, Giresse and Fernandez. He has a good managing career having guided Monaco, Lyon, Fulham and currently Besiktas (leading them to a league title in his first season). He has not always made the best talent decisions - Steve Marlet for 11.5m pounds??? Tigana remains a strong option, but with the strong candidates from the 1998 side he will be a distant 3rd in the pecking order. My favorite Tigana moment from the 1984 European Cup 1/2 finals, remember this was in the 120th minute of one of the most competitive and nail biting match -



Wenger would be great, but maybe what France should do is keep him on a retainer for scouting young talent and getting them to Clairefontaine, he could remain the manager for Arsenal but help Les Bleus find up and coming youth. He already turned down the offer, but has kept the door open. Roux would have been a great option 10 years ago, but I think he has lost his "fast ball" based on his showing managing Lens for a brief spell. Some outside options - Giresse who currently manages Gabon, Luis Fernandez who is a fiery manager or Paul Le Guen who manages Cameroon...these are all long long long shots....what about Hiddink? Hmmmm.

I think that in the end Deschamps will be the next manager. Why? I think Blanc will turn down the role. The fact he is strongly considered for the Manchester United job will give him much pause before taking over Les Bleus. Club jobs such as Manchester United come by very rarely in one's career - and coincides with your own rising fortune is the perfect storm. What if Blanc takes over Les Bleus and France do not qualify for the Euros? As quickly as one's stature is elevated so it can be knocked down. I think Blanc would want to be able to potentially take on a role like Manchester United while he can, such a chance might not be seen again for 10 years. As we all know, being a national team manager is not a long term role so Blanc would most likely get a chance to manage Les Bleus down the road. Where as Deschamps has been openly lobbying for the role for a long time...I think he would be a great manager for Les Bleus. He walks in with immediate respect having captained the side to World Cup and European Cup glory. Having managed in France and Italy gives him good insight into different elements of European footie. With the most likely retirement of Henry after the World Cup, France will be without an on field member of the 1998 class. Having the captain of that side manage the side would allow the success from those glory years to be infused in the next generation.

Too bad Deschamps cannot take over in January 2010 rather than August...

The inigma that is Pat Vieira....

On one of the many web feeds I get, I saw a headline about Pat Vieira and the fact his career with Les Bleus might have come to an end. That got me thinking about the future of Pat, at least with regards to international football. Bottom line...I think we have seen the last of #4 for Les Bleus. Why? A couple of factors -

• When you play for your nation, you really need to look at the viability of a player being able to play at a high level in 2 year increments. Simple math - World Cup and European Cups - these major events give nations a two year window for players. In my opinion, if your player may not be able to play in the tournament, do you really want to rely on them for qualifying? Maybe for a game here or there, but you need to ensure that not only do you qualify, but that you develop the team that will carry you in the tournament.
• Injuries, Pat has not been the model of health for the past few seasons. Every since he left North London he has be fraught with nagging injuries, even having to opt out of the Romania game minutes before kick off due to a knock he picked up during warm ups. The fact that Pat was selected for France during the Euros and played exactly zero minutes is indicative of the injury bug he has been cursed with at this stage of his career. It is suicidal to go into a major tournament with a member of your squad that might not even play due to injury, let alone a player you want to build your midfield around.
  
• Other strong options at the holding midfield role - Toulalan, LDiarra, ADiarra, Flamini just to name a few. One cannot overlook the rise of Blaise Matuidi with St Eteinne. A player that is seen as the next generation of strong holding midfielders in the mold of Makelele. Didier Deschamps has been harping on the midfielders ability and talents, saying he is one of the best players in Ligue 1. When it comes to holding midfielders, I think Deschamps has some first hand knowledge of what it takes to succeed a that position. With all this talent at the holding midfield position, shouldn't France opt to build around one of these pairings rather than hope that somehow Pat regains the form of his glory years?

I think the writing is on the wall for Pat. I pray that Domenech learns from the mistakes Lemerre made during the 2002 world cup...and....Domenech made during the German Euros, holding on to the older generation. Vieira has been one of the greatest players France has played. When it comes to greatest holding midfielders for Les Bleus, I might have him planted at #1. My rankings -

1. Vieira - intimidating tackler and defender. Gets the #1 slot because he was also a goal scoring threat, see game versus Spain in the World Cup as well as the last group game against Togo. During his glory days there was non better a true "box to box" midfielder.
   
2. Deschamps - hard not to give him the #1 slot, but the "water carrier" as Cantona called him, was a hard tackler, controlled the midfield and was a solid captain. Look at how he completely outplayed Dunga in the 1998 world cup finals. He was the cornerstone for the great run Les Bleus enjoyed from 1998 - 2000.
3. Tigana - hero from my youth. I remember watching him play during the 1984 European Cup, it was his incredible work rate that allowed Platini and Giresse to free lance and add their touch in the midfield. His sheer will power won him the ball and set up the cross that allowed Platini to score the winner against Portugal in the 1984 semi finals.
4. Makelele - he did not achieve the lofty levels he did whilst at Real Madrid or Chelsea. Scary that he was left off some sides because of the incredible talent ahead of him - Deschamps, Karembeu, Petit...but was the tackling force for Les Bleus in the World Cup in Germany.
5. Petit - Petit was a forgotten man during France's run in the 1998 World Cup as well as the qualifying campaign for the 2000 European Cup. Manu was perfect shouldering Karembeu and Deschamps in the midfield for Les Bleus. With the amazing talent of Zidane, France was able to play with 3 holding midfielders, but made the system work was that both Petit and Karembeu had more offensive ability than traditional holding midfielders. The one added element for Petit was his threat to score goals and take free kicks.

I hope we see Pat one more time in Blue with the #4 emblazon on his back. I realize seeing him play on the South African pitches might be a long shot, and actually highly unlikely. We may have seen one of France's greatest players step down from the big stage, but what a run he had for Les Bleus.

Si tu quite, merci Pat!