Former French centre Philippe Sella has conceded that the June test series between Les Bleus and the All Blacks will be "very tough for the French team."
The French side have named a depleted squad for the upcoming three-test series, with a number of players unavailable through injury or clubcommitments.
Sella, who played 111 tests for France, told the Herald he expected the tour to provide a stern test for a French side building toward next year's Rugby World Cup in Japan. He noted in the past few years, France hadn't played as well as they're capable of at the international level, falling to eighth in the world rankings.
"If you want to get better, if you want to build something, you have to have ambition to be one team to reach the best level when you play internationally," he said.
"You know the value of the All Blacks team. For a long, long time it's been a very good team. It's not one of the best teams in the world – it's the best team in the world."
The 56-year-old will be in New Zealand for the tests on June 9 in Auckland and June 16 in Wellington. Before the games, he'll appear alongside the like of ex-All Blacks Andrew Mehrtens and Keven Mealamu at a business networking event hosted by the French New Zealand Chamber of Commerce at Eden Park on June 7.
Sella, now head coach of Top 14 side Agen, faced the All Blacks 10 times in his international career, which spanned from 1982 to 1995. In those 10 tests, the All Blacks won seven – including the 1987 World Cup final. But while France would be without the likes of incumbent captain Guilhem Guirado next month, Sella wasn't prepared to count his countrymen out just yet.
"Sometimes it's hard for the coach because they lose players with injury because the French club season is very long.
"We have always one chance when we go onto the pitch – always. You know the difficulties you can have against the different international teams, but if you don't think you have a chance when you go onto the pitch – stay at home.
