France coach Laurent Blanc, who is facing criticism, expresses during a hearing that he ‘regrets making certain opinions’ regarding dual-nationality players at youth training centres.
Blanc acknowledged that a discussion took place on November 8 of the previous year during a joint hearing conducted by the French Football Federation (FFF) and the Sports Ministry, clarifying that the discussion did not pertain to himself directly.
The inquiry has attributed responsibility for how the subject was addressed to Francois Blaquart, the suspended national technical director, while also drawing attention to communication issues within the FFF.
After the hearing, held at a confidential location in Paris, Blanc returned to Bordeaux.
As the last witness, Blanc concluded the hearings, leaving Sports Ministry inspectors to compile their report. On Tuesday morning, Sports Minister Chantal Jouanno held a press conference to present the findings.
Initiated ten days ago, the two-pronged inquiry followed the release of a transcript from the November meeting by the Mediapart website.
In recent years, several players have transitioned from French academies to representing France at youth levels before switching their allegiances to senior teams of different nations.
This situation has sparked significant controversy and created divisions among the multi-racial France team that triumphed in the 1998 World Cup.
Members of the 1998 France squad, including the legendary Zinedine Zidane, have since voiced their opinions on the matter, with Zidane expressing his backing for the beleaguered Blanc.
When questioned about whether Blanc’s remarks were discriminatory, Zidane stated, “No, and regarding Laurent, let’s be straight and clear: I know him well, and he is certainly not racist.
“I’ll go further… he doesn’t even think that way because it’s not something that concerns him. I believe that is why he found himself involved in such a discussion.”
Criticism of Blanc has been voiced by Lilian Thuram and Patrick Vieira, while support has come from Christophe Dugarry, Marcel Desailly, Bixente Lizarazu, and World Cup-winning coach Aime Jacquet.
by Buford Balony