How Will the French Fair in the 2006 World Cup?

With odds of 12-1 France are relative underdogs for the 2006 World Cup and for those of you who enjoy a gamble then perhaps this experienced horse may be worth a flutter. There is no doubting that times have changed dramatically for the French since the golden era which saw them crowned World Cup champions in 1998 and then European champions two years later. Yet in 2002 the French made an early exit from the competition in a group which they would have expected to have qualified from without too many problems. France entered the tournament with the top goalscorers from the English, French and Italian leagues in the squad but failed to score in a truly dismal defence of their crown. After another disappointing showing at Euro 2004, the French national team will cross the border into Germany highly motivated to erase the nightmare of 2002.

On paper, the French coach Raymond Domenech has a very strong pool at his disposal with a fine mix of tried and trusty stalwarts combined with fresh faced, exciting, new talent. Yet for some reason Domenech hasn't quite semed to achieve the same high standard of performance out of his team as Aime Jaquet did in 1998 and Roger Lemerre did in 2000. Les Bleus just managed to qualify from their European qualifying group having being pushed right to the finishing line by eventual runners up Switzerland and third placed Ireland.

The most pressing decision to be made by Domenech regards who he is going to choose as his number 1 in goal. Veteran Fabian Barthez and Lyon shot-stopper Gregory Coupet are head to head for the starting place in goal when France commence their World Cup campaign against Switzerland come June 13th. Recently Domenech has favoured the Olympique Marseille gardien Barthez- who will be 36 in June- but the French support recently booed and jeered the ex-Manchester United man in the shock friendly defeat to Slovakia. It will be interesting to see whether or not Domenech bows to pressure from the supporters and installs Coupet as his number one.

The French media slated the nation's defence which looked less than impressive against Slovakia on March 1st. Dommenach is set to favour a central defensive partnership of Thuram and Gallas with Jean Alain Boumsong on the bench after his disastrous season at Newcastle United. The trust-worthy Willy Sagnol is set to continue at right-back with Lyon's Eric Abidal featuring on the left hand side of defence. Abidal has only been capped four times for his country, although his Champion's League experience with his club may prepare him for the big match pressure he will have to quickly learn how to deal with in Germany. The national media has been slightly harsh in their criticism of the defence as they qualified with the best defensive record out of all the European teams who have booked their place in the festival of football this summer.

The household names of Zidane, Vieira and Makalele trip off the tongue and combine to make a formidable looking midfield. Although the skill and football brain are still present in abundance, it will be intriguing to see if the expensive, immensely talented legs of the great Zizou will last the whole competition should France progress to the more demanding latter stages. Approaching the age of 34, it could be his last chance to impress on the biggest stage in world football. The final spot on the left hand side of the midfield four will be filled by eiher Sylvain Wiltord or Paris Saint Germain's Vikash Dhorasoo, both not naturally left footed but fine players regardless.

Goals should not be a problem for this side with a pacey frontline spearheaded by France's golden boy Thierry Henry and Juventus hitman David Trezeguet. Henry has 31 goals in 75 starts for his country and his strike partner Trezeguet has hit the back of the net an even more clinical 31 times in 60 appearances. On the bench Djibril Cisse and Wiltord will be waiting in the wings for their moment to shine in attack.

France must go to Germany in 2006 with the confidence and belief that they can do the business there, despite recent criticism from their fans. They have drawn a favourable group and providing they don't stumble against the Swiss then victories against South Korea and Togo shouldn't be as hard to come by. Although Domenech is well aware that he would be foolish to underestimate South Korea who finished semi-finalists in 2002. Victory in this group would see them face the runner up of group H- more than likely Spain or the Ukraine- and in that match we will really be able to judge whether or not Zizou and his teammates are capable of going all the way to victory in the 2006 World Cup. Perhaps at 12-1 it may be worth taking a chance and backing Les Bleus.

Daniel Law.