 | FRANCEFederation Francaise de Football |  |
Fabien Barthez
We are the champions
FRANCE ; Still my pick to win it all. OK a bit dreamy in their first fifteen
SQUADGoalkeepers
Bernard Lama
Ulrich Rame
Defenders
Lauren Blanc
Vincent Candela
Marcel Desailly
Frank Leboeuf
Bixente Lizarazu
Lilian Thuram
Midfielders
Didier Deschamps
Youri Djorkaeff
Christian Karembou
Johan Micoud
Emmanuel Petit
Patrick Vieira
Zinedine Zidane
Strikers
Nicolas Anelka
Christophe Dugarry
Thierry Henry
Robert Pires
David Trezeguet
Sylvain Wiltord
GROUP MATCHES Bruges 11.6.2000 (18.00)
France v Denmark 3-0Bruges 16.6.2000 (18.00)
France v Czech Republic 2-1Amsterdam 21.6.2000 (20.45)
France v Holland 2-3
(win 2-1 over Spain)
(beat Portugal 2-1 on golden goal rule)
(beat Italy 2-1 aet, golden goal)
OK, they knew they would
Team Stats
6
0
8
40
41
83
111
36
9
Player Stats
Goalkeepers
Bernard Lama
Fabien Barthez
Ulrich Rame
Outfield
2
Vincent Candela
3
Bixente Lizarazu
4
Patrick Vieira
5
Laurent Blanc
6
Youri Djorkaeff
7
Didier Deschamps
8
Marcel Desailly
9
Nicolas Anelka
10
Zinedine Zidane
11
Robert Pires
12
Thierry Henry
13
Sylvain Wiltord
14
Johan Micoud
15
Lilian Thuram
17
Emmanuel Petit
18
Frank Leboeuf
19
Christian Karembeu
20
David Trezeguet
21
Christophe Dugarry
"On est champions, on est champions, on est, on est, on est champions ".
After 103 minutes of agony, French supporters are finally able to chant their victory song.
Even when all seemed lost, the fans of the world champions just couldn't conceive of defeat. « We are unbeatable» they were heard shouting as they trailed 1-0 going into injury time. And win they did. Even if goalkeeper Fabien Barthez admitted to us he thought they'd left it too late.
"It was only when Sylvain equalised that I knew we were going to do it".
Wiltord's goal was followed by a rousing version of the Marseillaise. The cup, it seemed, had France's name all over it.
Nothing but today's victory seems to matter to the players tonight. That they have entered football legend has yet to sink in. Sat at the back of the bus, Zizou is full of smiles. He poses for a photo with his mate Alan Boghossian and TV presenter Nagui.
Frank Lebœuf revealed that he found this final incredibly stressful from his seat on the bench - far harder than when he played in the World Cup Final.
"I could never be a coach, it's so tough not being out on the pitch." And once again the fans certainly won't disagree with him there.
The tension was unbearable in the Feijenoord stadium as the Italians seemed to be heading for certain victory. The sky suddenly lit up over the stadium. A strange light filled the air as if the apocalypse was approaching. Could this be the end of the world? Maybe - but who cares? Because the French dream is still alive, and Christophe Dugarry is beginning to realise the magnitude of what they have achieved when he talks to us as he leaves the dressing room.
"I'm happy with the way I played at EURO 2000™. It's not quite the World Cup, but it comes close."
He told us that the crowd's undying support gave him and his team-mates the extra lift they needed. The fans in the Marathon stand were without doubt the 12th player, or should we say 23rd member of the squad.
"Come on you Blues" echoed around the ground, and Roger Lemerre and his side repayed them in the best way possible.
We leave the last word to Frank Lebœuf: "At France 98, we had God in the person of Aimé Jacquet. This year we had Saint Peter."
As for the Italians, God was obviously playing on the other side!
Official Site
BRUSSELS, June 28 (Reuters) - Zinedine Zidane said after France knocked Portugal out of Euro 2000 that TV replays suggested the referee had been right to award the late golden goal penalty which gave the French their 2-1 semifinal win.
Zidane told reporters: "Apparently, TV replays show it was the correct decision. I could not see."
He added: "It was a very difficult match. You can't say that the Portuguese did not deserve to be in the final as much as we did."
Zidane recognised the burden of taking the spot kick, saying: "A penalty in extra time with the golden goal rule is a great responsibility but everything went well."
He added: "When the ball was on the spot I didn't ask myself any questions. I had to shoot.
"I was just concentrating on hitting it hard enough. but it's not always easy to get rid of everthing happening around you."
Marcel Desailly said: "We were not lucky. We did enough to show that we were the better team. We made the right substitutes at the right time."
Patrick Vieira said: "I think it was the mental strength of our group that made the difference."
PAPER TIGERS
After France's match against Holland, in which the French fielded a number
of "squad" players, their cheerleading newspaper, L'Equipe, asked: "What
would be the most logical final at Euro 2000?" Their answer: "France A v
France B." Mercifully, Holland won the last Group D game 3-2, but the French
attitude, even in defeat, only inflamed The Diary's growing suspicion that
France have achieved something remarkable at this tournament. They've
produced a football team, and a culture around it, which is even more
arrogant than that of the Dutch.
minutes against the busy Danes, but there was never any doubt as to which
was the superior team. Nor was there any question that they would impose
that superiority effectively (unlike Spain,let's say, or Yugoslavia). Great
depth on the bench will be helpful in future matches, as this group still
provides plenty of challenge before Title Time can even be contemplated.
(Seamus Malin, www.fuxito.com)
La Marseillaise
Arise children of the fatherland, the day of glory has arrived
Against us tyranny's bloody standard is raised
Listen to the sound in the fields
The howling of these fearsome soldiers
They are coming into our midst
To cut the throats of your sons and consorts
To arms citizens! From your battalions
March, march!
Let impure blood, water our furrows
What do they want this horde of slaves
Of traitors and conspirational kings?
For whom these vile chains
These long-prepared irons?
Frenchmen, for us, ah! What outrage
What methods must be taken?
It is we they dare plan
To return to the old slavery!
(Followed by five more verses in a similar vein)
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Snails Cauderon Melt the lard in a frying pan and brown the ham and chopped shallots. Add a small amount of breadcrumbs soaked in the wine. Moisten with stock and season with salt and pepper. Add the bouquet garni and cook for 20 minutes. Add the well-washed snails. Cook over a low heat for 40 minutes, turning often
Wash down with
| Goal: But Offside: Hors jeu Penalty: Penalty Foul: Faute
"Aux chiottes l'arbitre!" (To the dogs, referee!) |