Evra - warms up with the subs having been
dropped
France captain Patrice Evra will call a press
conference later this week to fully detail the reasons behind Les
Bleus' disastrous World Cup campaign following their humiliating
first-round exit .
Raymond Domenech's team lost 2-1 to South Africa today to finish
bottom of Group A with one point from their three matches.
Their campaign has been as troubled off the pitch with Nicolas
Anelka sent home in disgrace following a dispute with Domenech and
the players boycotting training in protest.
And Evra, who was dropped for this match, has vowed to reveal
the full story sooner rather than later but insists tonight is too
soon for his potentially explosive revelations.
"It's not the time now for the settling of scores, it's the time
now for apologising and for feeling all the suffering that the
millions of French are feeling," the Manchester United defender
told French channel TF1.
"This apology goes directly to them. I wanted to do it yesterday
but I was forbidden by my coach.
"I'm not going to go into details, I'll give a press conference
during the week.
"I really respect the suffering the French are feeling at this
failure.
"They need to know the truth, they need to know exactly what
happened that this disaster came about.
"People will know how we came to this point. But I didn't come
here to say that now, I came to say sorry.
"I'll repeat again that I wanted to say it yesterday but I was
forbidden."
Evra, who insists he and his team-mates had every reason to go
on strike on Sunday, also revealed he is baffled as to why he was
dropped against Bafana Bafana.
He said: "Tonight there was no valid reason at all for why I
wasn't on the pitch. I'm not a liar, I will tell the truth.
"People don't yet know the whole history (of Anelka) but you
will.
"But you have to respect people and so there's a huge apology
even if that doesn't change anything. I feel really bad, the French
people even more so than me and you have to respect that today.
"I will detail everything, what I experienced, every minute.
Believe me I won't hide anything, I will tell the truth.
"But believe me what I have to say, tonight is not the time.
"The French need to know and they will know, during the week, as
soon as possible."
