Barthez ponders Nantes future after fan attack
Former Manchester United goalkeeper Fabien Barthez could quit
Nantes after he was attacked by fans following a 2-0 home defeat to
Rennes at the weekend.
The 36-year-old was forced to stop his car as he was driving out of
the club's training ground with a member of his family hours after
Saturday's match, when he was confronted by a cluster of angry Les
Canaris supporters.
Nantes president Rudi Roussillon claims one fan attempted to get
inside the Porsche to confront Barthez, while others punched and
kicked at the vehicle.
Barthez, a member of the France teams that won the 1998 World Cup
and finished runners-up to Italy in 2006, is believed to be shaken
by the incident and did not attend training on Sunday.
He is currently with his family and is contemplating his
future.
'He is traumatised,' said Roussillon in French daily
L'Equipe.
'He has been around a while and has seen quite a lot of things, but
I know one thing - he hates physical violence. That is what
happened on Saturday.
'He has left Nantes to recharge his batteries and be with his
family. It is understandable. All day (on Sunday), I tried to raise
his spirits.'
Saturday's defeat kept Nantes bottom of France's Ligue 1 and eight
points adrift of safety with four games left in their
campaign.
