Soccer: Humbled France ready to rumble, says Henry

Four years ago, France suffered one of the most dramatic failures in World Cup history when, as holders, Les Bleus were eliminated in the first round without even scoring a goal.

The setback cost coach Roger Lemerre his job. And it is still far from sure that today's team have recovered fully from the trauma.

After losing the opening match 1-0 to debutants Senegal in Seoul, the world and European champions were held 0-0 by Uruguay before a 2-0 defeat to Denmark sent them home early.

But while elimination was unexpected, it was not such a total surprise. The French players had been leading the lives of movie actors or rock stars. For two years, the squad training HQ at Clairefontaine, in a quiet forest in the Paris suburbs, was a circus - the place to see and be seen.

"It was just unbelievable," striker Thierry Henry said later. "We were caught in a whirlwind. We were not prepared to play in the 2002 World Cup. People expected too much."

Around 1000 fans farewelled the players at Roissy Airport the day they took off for Asia. Dressed in their finery, the feted stars were playing an act rather than heading for the world's most compelling soccer competition.

Seoul was not the ideal place for them to stay. Their five-star hotel on a hill swiftly became a bunker. About 300 journalists attended training sessions and the players soon appeared aloof, giving little at press conferences.

"There was nothing to do," said striker Djibril Cisse. "We just hung out at the hotel just waiting for the next day, the next match. Going downtown was out of question."

France would have welcomed the boost and influence of a charismatic leader. But former captain Didier Deschamps and influential sweeper Laurent Blanc had retired in 2000.

Neither veteran libero Marcel Desailly, nor talisman playmaker Zinedine Zidane filled the void.

"We have learned a lot from what happened there," Henry said. "We are much more humble now. We realised that having the best players is not necessarily enough. You have to act like a team, to play like a team."

After a lacklustre qualifying campaign, France are anything but the favourites this time but this suits coach Raymond Domenech. "We will have to behave like a squad in which everyone is pulling for everyone else. It's the only way to win the World Cup again," he said.

- REUTERS