FRANCE: NICHOLAS ANELKA REFUSES TO JOIN FRENCH SQUAD FOR INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY, REAX.
Record ID:
647736
FRANCE: NICHOLAS ANELKA REFUSES TO JOIN FRENCH SQUAD FOR INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY, REAX.
- Title: FRANCE: NICHOLAS ANELKA REFUSES TO JOIN FRENCH SQUAD FOR INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY, REAX.
- Date: 20th November 2002
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (NOVEMBER 19, 2002) (REUTERS) 1. JOURNALISTS WAITING BEFORE NEWS CONFERENCE 2. JACQUES SANTINI ARRIVING AT NEWS CONFERENCE 3. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH TEAM COACH JACQUES SANTINI SAYING "We've had several problems; already on Monday we had to call in Benoit Pedretti to replace the possible absence of Pat Vieira and now the doctors have pretty much confirmed the absence of Zidane, as a result of which this morning I called in Ludovic Giuly. So several things have changed compared with what we had expected and the way we had trained and above all the result that we expected for this match. But all these things are part of the life of a team and one must be able to adjust at the last minute." 4. JACQUES SANTINI AT NEWS CONFERENCE 5. (SOUNDBITE) (French) JACQUES SANTINI TALKING ABOUT NICOLAS ANELKA WHO DECLINED TO JOIN THE SQUAD "My reaction is a big disappointment; in a way I do not understand Anelka's decision and I resent the fact that he did not answer me personally, which all the others did when I called them to be part of the line-up." CLAIREFONTAINE, FRANCE (NOVEMBER 18, 2002) (REUTERS) 6. FRANCE SQUAD TRAINING PARIS, FRANCE (NOVEMBER 19, 2002) (REUTERS) 7. (SOUNDBITE) (French) MARCEL DESAILLY SAYING ABOUT ANELKA "At the beginning it was a big shock but then one must accept the way in which he took his decision, he must have taken into account all the elements around him. The most important thing is to respect his decision, to respect the decision of a player that after analysing his personal circumstances decides to refuse to play. It doesn't mean that now he rejects the French team or that he's not ready to come back." 8. THIERRY HENRY ARRIVING AT NEWS CONFERENCE 9. (SOUNDBITE) (French) THIERRY HENRY SAYING "I'm not here to talk about Nicolas, nor to judge him. He's a big boy, I respect him and I respect his decision. That's all." 10. CAMERAMAN AT NEWS CONFERENCE 11. (SOUNDBITE) (French) THIERRY HENRY SAYING "We, the French, know the Yugoslavs very well, because there are several Yugoslavs who have played and played still in France. One thing we can say is that they've always made themselves noticed." 12. DANIEL MOREIRA ARRIVING AT NEWS CONFERENCE 13. (SOUNDBITE) (French) DANIEL MOREIRA SAYING "Of course I think one cannot say 'no' to a call from the French team. Anelka must have his reasons. For me, personally, it's an honour to be part of it." CLAIREFONTAINE, FRANCE (NOVEMBER 18 2002) (REUTERS) 14. FRENCH TEAM TRAINING Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 5th December 2002 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: CLAIREFONTAINE AND PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Reuters ID: LVA157BNJPT79QV1SKR9CZ7799M9
- Story Text: A French squad weakened by injuries and desertions has
been talking about the friendly match against Yugoslavia and
Nicolas Anelka's decision not to join them.
Zinedine Zidane will almost certainly miss Wednesday's
(November 20) friendly against Yugoslavia because of a back
injury, French coach Jacques Santini said on Tuesday (November
19, 2002).
He has called up Monaco midfielder Ludovic Giuly to
replace the Real Madrid star.
The French coach has had to cope with several injuries in
the lead-up to the game, the last outing of what has been a
miserable year for the deposed world champions.
Striker Sidny Govou is out with a thigh injury and
defender Willy Sagnol is also injured. They have been replaced
by RC Lens's Daniel Moreira and AJ Auxerre's Philippe Mexes
respectively.
"We've had several problems," said Santini. "Already on
Monday we had to call in Benoit Pedretti to replace the
possible absence of Pat Vieira and now the doctors have pretty
much confirmed the absence of Zidane, as a result of which
this morning I called in Ludovic Giuly.
"So several things have changed compared with what we had
expected and the way we had trained and above all the result
that we expected for this match. But all these things are part
of the life of a team and one must be able to adjust at the
last minute."
Nicolas Anelka of Manchester City has declined an
invitation to join the squad as a replacement. The French
Football Federation (FFF) is considering asking City to ban
Anelka for two English premier league matches and has
threatened to involve soccer's world governing body FIFA.
The striker's grievance with Santini stems from the fact
that he was not among the first choice squad but rather a
stand-in for Olympique Lyon striker Govou, who is now out
anyway.
The 23-year-old Anelka, who has courted controversy
throughout his career which already spans five clubs including
Arsenal and Real Madrid, announced his snub to journalists
late on Sunday.
Santini said he had learned of Anelka's decision in the
newspapers.
"My reaction is a big disappointment; in a way I do not
understand Anelka's decision and I resent the fact that he did
not answer me personally, which all the others did when I
called them to be part of the line-up."
Marcel Desailly told journalists: "At the beginning it was
a big shock, but then one must accept the way in which he took
his decision, he must have taken into account all the elements
around him. The most important thing is to respect his
decision, to respect the decision of a player that after
analysing his personal circumstances decides to refuse to
play. It doesn't mean that now he rejects the French team or
that he's not ready to come back."
Thierry Henry said: "I'm not here to talk about Nicolas,
nor to judge him. He's a big boy, I respect him and I respect
his decision. That's all."
Regarding Wednesday's friendly, Henry said the French
squad were well aware of the Yugoslavs' abilities.
"We, the French, know the Yugoslavs very well, because
there are several Yugoslavs who have played and played still
in France. One thing we can say is that they've always made
themselves noticed."
RC Lens playmaker Daniel Moreira, who scored one and
created another in Lens's 3-2 victory over Paris St Germain on
Sunday, has been brought into the squad.
"Of course I think one cannot say 'no' to a call from the
French team," he said on Tuesday. "Anelka must have his
reasons. For me, personally, it's an honour to be part of it."
Probable team: 16-Fabien Barthez; 15-Lilian Thuram,
5-William Gallas, 8-Marcel Desailly, 3-Jeremie Brechet;
7-Claude Makelele, 17-Emmanuel Petit, 14-Eric Carriere,
21-Olivier Kapo; 12-Thierry Henry, 11-Sylvain Wiltord
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