Sacre Bleu by Spiro Matthew

Author:Spiro Matthew
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Published: 2020-05-31T16:00:00+00:00

When I meet André Merelle in the gardens of a restaurant in the leafy town of Rambouillet, just up to the road from Clairefontaine, the retired coach is friendly and talkative. But it is impossible not to notice the hint of sadness lurking behind his jovial exterior. The man who committed thirty years of his life to working for the FFF, and was instrumental in developing players like Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka and Blaise Matuidi, found himself unceremoniously sacked in 2010. He knows that, inevitably, I will be wanting to ask about that, and about the quota scandal that cast a horribly dark shadow over Clairefontaine six months later.

The wound is still raw. Merelle is convinced that Houllier and Blaquart needed to find a scapegoat for Les Bleus’ shortcomings and unfairly pointed the finger at Clairefontaine’s old guard. ‘I remember when we had meetings to discuss modern trends in football,’ Merelle begins. ‘I’d always mention the importance of technique, and I’d see them rolling their eyes. [France under-21 coach] Erick Mombaerts would tell me that technique is only secondary. Apparently mentality is more important now. But who are Blaquart and Mombaerts? What have they done in their careers? I heard Blaquart say we should stop hyping up individuals and start focusing more on the collective. But don’t we need talented individuals too? Perhaps he wants France to have a team without talent because he didn’t have any and he’s jealous of those who do.’

Merelle was not surprised by the quota scandal. He says he had sensed for some time that the FFF wanted to reduce the intake of children from immigrant backgrounds, something he steadfastly refused to adhere to. ‘Our job was to pick the best kids from the Paris region,’ he insists. ‘The fact is the majority of the kids who play football in these areas are black, and more often than not they are the best players.’

It is easy to feel sorry for the former Bordeaux and Rouen defender. When France won the 1998 World Cup, he and his colleague Claude Dusseau were hailed for their roles in developing so much exceptional talent. A decade later, despite having continued to work in the same, diligent manner, they were blamed for French football’s woes. Not only were their training methods being described as archaic, they were also accused of contributing to the brat culture that was plaguing the national team.

By putting children on a pedestal at such a young, impressionable age, Clairefontaine was creating egos and raising individuals in a bubble that bore no resemblance to real life. ‘The kids did sense that they’re part of an elite, and the environment makes them very sure of themselves,’ Merelle concedes. ‘But we’re not the ones giving them big heads. You see twelve-year-old kids arrive. They have an agent, their parents are telling them they’re going to be stars, and some of them have already signed pre-contracts with professional clubs. It’s not easy to keep them grounded in those circumstances.’

Merelle, however,

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.