Monday, 15th March 2010

France struggled to qualify for the World Cup in the recent qualifiers, needing to win a controversial play-off against the Republic of Ireland to earn their passage into the tournament. Coach Raymond Domenech has been under constant pressure throughout the whole ordeal, but remains focused on the task at South Africa rather than the criticism directed toward him.

“Like any other coach. I always tell the story of the frog in the boiling water. If you just throw it in, it’ll scream and suffer a lot, but if you put it in cold water and heat it up slowly, it will tough it out a lot longer,” Domenech said in response to how he handles the pressure. “Being a coach is a little bit like that. You live with stress all the time. That’s all you have day after day. It’s a natural state.”

Domenech has constantly been rumoured to be replaced as France coach, with many pointing at Bordeaux’s Laurent Blanc as his ideal replacement.

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