World Cup 2010 Preview: France
1 Nov
France was the champion of 1998 FIFA World Cup, but the team is not showing steady performances afterwards. After being eliminated early during the 2002 World Cup, France is looking pretty solid for the 2010 World Cup. Will they be the team that will take down this year’s grand championship?
Zinedine Zidane, Fabien Barthez, Claude Makelele and Lilian Thuram — all start players of the team in 1998 — are all officially retired, so this year’s France is being backed by strong young players along with experienced Thierry Henry leading as the team’s captain. Still we can expect to see great players such as the defensive William Gallas, Jeremy Toulalan, Yoann Gourcuff, and of course Franck Ribery as well as another experienced player Nicolas Anelka along with several other quality players should be more than enough to construct a strong team for the championship.
Raymond Domenech, the team’s coach, is highly motivated to succeed in this year’s World Cup, especially after performing poorly at the 2008 UEFA Euro. The team is hungry for a win indeed, with formations and strategies working out well. French is up for a strong start, but the competition is nothing to be considered light at all. Aside from 2010 World Cup host, South Africa, France is up against Mexico and Uruguay.
Will this year be France’s year? Will they be the next World Cup champion? Only time will tell. With the 2010 World Cup just around the corner, France is a strong contender for sure.