Doc:The problem with the French team wasn't Anelka but Nasri

zocoss SG

Former France team doctor Jean-Pierre Paclet has defended Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka's role in Les Bleus' World Cup meltdown.

Under former coach Raymond Domenech, the team managed just one point and one goal from their three Group A games.

And their campaign descended into total anarchy when the squad refused to train two days before their third match against hosts South Africa, in protest at Anelka's exclusion from the party following a dressing-room bust-up with Domenech.

But Paclet, in extracts from his book L'Implosion reproduced in the Sunday Times, played down the player's perceived disruptive influence and insisted Domenech was aware of the 31-year-old's feelings on his lone striker role, which appears to have been the root cause of the dispute.

"When Domenech went to see Anelka at Chelsea last season, Anelka warned him, let him know that there was no point taking him to South Africa if it was to play him in a position he didn't like," he wrote.

"The problem with the French team wasn't Anelka. You have to understand he is loved within the squad, immensely popular, even if he's introverted."

By contrast, Paclet has pinpointed Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri as a key figure in the infighting in the France team in recent years.

Nasri was not included in the squad for the World Cup, but Paclet alleges that the 23-year-old was a source of a disquiet which dates back further than June after upsetting captain Patrice Evra and senior professionals Thierry Henry, William Gallas and former Marseille team-mate Franck Ribery.

"Here was a kid with a dozen caps looking down on players with a hundred. Scarcely believable," Paclet claimed. "His behaviour gets on the nerves of almost everybody and he has the gift of really annoying Henry, Gallas and Patrice Evra.

"Most of all, the relationship between Nasri and Ribery was very tense, from the time they were together at Marseille. They were more like kids in a playground rather than professionals on a pitch.

"Ribery would cause general laughter if, say, he put salt in my coffee. If he did it to Nasri, there would be no sense of humour from him."

Poignant SG

woah, i dint expect Nasri to be like that..

DemonFox SG

eh so what does nasri do in the world cup? he wasnt in the squad? he go all the way to south africa to make problem? So assume tat nasri got problem with the senior players but he wasnt pick and hence cant make trouble. so how can tat affect the france team during world cup?

the Bear SG

i think the trouble with the french team was that they were the french team

Asromanista2001 SG

all the blacks and non-French are theproblem...........

blacks are like that one...........nothing but trouble when they're famous and rich..............

and North Africans like Nazri, Benzema and Ben Arfa.................they always look down on black Africans .................

these bastards should just play for their native countries................

Bus&Soccer l0v3r (VO3x 1) SG

wth

Nasri ... look down on ppl that has experience in Caps than him

wad a shame

reyes SG

yeah, so why nasri was put in the blame if he was left out from the WC squad?

the french team miss his behaviour so much that they flop?

if the french team couldnt cope with a ypung player attitude, they are real flop.

Poignant SG

no luh, not about what happened at world cup but more of what happened to the france team after the Zico era.

Rock^Star SG

they shd all french kiss and make up.

omgukilledkenny SG

Its a well known fact that there's a rift between the old birds and the young guns, fingers were pointed during the WC that Gourcuff was an instigator too.