Hamelin (Germany): France need to add a touch of Gallic finesse to their trademark defensive displays if they are to go a long way at the Word Cup, coach Raymond Domenech said on Thursday.
The 1998 champions, who started with a dull 0-0 draw with Switzerland on Tuesday, at least pleased their coach by controlling the game and neutralising their opponents.
"We were solid, compact and that's how we wanted to be," Domenech told a news conference. "The Swiss were dangerous only on two set pieces and maybe on one other occasion."
The problem, the coach admitted, was that France, who have not scored on the World Cup scene since lifting the trophy eight years ago, hardly created a chance.
"We have to keep relying on that organisation we have, that's a basis, but at the same time we need to add some imagination to make life difficult for our opponents," Domenech said.
"We need to play more freely, with more boldness."
The France coach, whose ageing team looked rusty and sluggish against the Swiss, said rejigging his line-up was not the solution.
"Changing everything is not the idea I have in mind," he said. "I want the group we have to improve."
France's poor start left their fans fearing the ghosts of 2002, when they left the World Cup without a win or a goal from the group stage, may soon return to haunt the team.
Domenech, however, said he was not worried.
"What I want to see is the players getting better every match, adding a little something each time," he said, his mind already set on France's next Group G match, against South Korea on Sunday in Leipzig.
The coach had said before the tournament that he believed his team, who will also face Togo in the group phase, could reach the July 9 final in Berlin.
"What matters is not to score 14 goals in the first match, it's to go a long way in the tournament, which I believe we'll do," he said on Thursday.
Comments
0 comment