UEFA Euro 2004 Portugal
French press in mourning
AFP, Paris
"Greek Tragedy," "The Blues' pitiful exit" or simply "The End". The French press deplored "the dismal end of the reign," of France's footballing heroes, knocked out of Euro 2004 by rank outsiders Greece 1-0 in a quarterfinal match in Lisbon."France's failure signifies the end for a whole generation. "The golden generation, which won the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championships in 2000," said the popular Aujourd'hui/Le Parisien daily, wallowing in nostalgia. The national sporting disaster, comparable to France's shock exit in the first stage of the 2002 World Cup held in Asia, was a joint effort by "players at the end of the line and a coach (Jacques Santini) who decided, even before the competition had started, to jump ship and sign a lucrative contract with an English club side (Tottenham)," the paper opined. Against the Greeks on Friday, as they had done throughout the competition, the French seemed out of it, "almost anaesthetised" in the middle of the noisy stadiums. "There was absolutely nobody to impose even a semblance of real football," the paper continued. France "bowed out of Euro 2004 via the tiniest of doors. Their defeat by Greece was a close one, but the difference in play, in spirit and in work-rate was enormous," the Liberation daily complained. For L'Equipe sporting daily the French legacy in the tournament was of "their disorganisation and impotency," with the team abdicating its title with a performance unworthy of its standing.
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BEYOND BELIEF: French midfield maestro Zinedine Zidane stands in agony as Greece's midfielder Theodoros Zagorakis jubilates after the final whistle of the Euro 2004 match that saw defending champions crash out from the quarterfinals. PHOTO: AFP |
