Inducted Thursday at the head of the Blue after the ousting of Corinne Deacon, Hervé Renard unveiled on Friday his first list of 26 players as coach of the France team.
The new era is launched, 114 days from the World Cup. Officially appointed coach of Les Bleues on Thursday, Hervé Renard has already entered the bath by unveiling, on Friday March 31, his first list of 26 players who will face in a friendly match Colombia (April 7 in Clermont-Ferrand) and Canada (April 11 in Le Mans), reigning Olympic champion. This will be the last gathering before the final list for the World Cup (from July 20 to August 20 in Australia and New Zealand), before which the Blues will challenge Ireland (July 6 in Dublin) and Australia (the July 14 in Melbourne). On the other side of the world, this summer, “the first objective will be to reach the last four”, recognized the new technician.
This first list marks a strong sign, with the return of the recent rebellious (captain Wendie Renard) and the former banished coach Corinne Deacon (Eugénie Le Sommer, top scorer in the history of the Blue). “I looked at all the individual cases, to get a clear idea of the qualities of each player”he explained during the presentation press conference, adding that his discussions with Eric Blahic, former assistant to Corinne Deacon back in the staff, “have been very valuable”. Another return, that of Amel Majri (30), who returned in January after giving birth to her daughter in July, or that of Léa Le Garrec (29), who has not worn the tricolor jersey since 2017
Obviously, the best jams are made in old jars. One thing is certain, for Hervé Renard, it is also a question of marking a real breaking point with the choices and methods of his predecessor, Corinne Deacon. “It’s a page that turns and what happened before is none of my business” he made a point of specifying quickly during his press conference of presentation.
If he was strongly expected to see captain Wendie Renard (142 selections), leader of the sling launched against the ex-coach, the return of Eugénie Le Sommer (175 selections) confirms that Hervé Renard intends to do well clean slate of the past. He is thus counting on the top scorer in the history of Les Bleues (86 goals) who has not worn the tricolor jersey since April 2021.
“My message is very clear with Eugénie: she has incomparable experience, he reminded us of the Lyon striker. We really need her experience and her intelligence in the game. I can’t wait to see her. see it at work. As we say: ‘welcome back’!”
Diani, Katototo and Henry back soon?
He also clarified that he had contacted the injured, who will not be able to be present at this gathering. And he confirmed that he would count, in the future, on Marie-Antoinette Katoto (rupture of the cruciate ligament of the right knee) and Kadidiatou Diani (affected Thursday evening against Chelsea), just like Amandine Henry, women who could “to have their place in a group for a World Cup“. “What happened before is none of my business. I focus on the present”decided the new coach, who returned “Tribute to Corinne Deacon who had very good results with this selection.”
“The French team represents something importantsaid Hervé Renard in his first words as coach. I have had a look at women’s football since 2014, watching the major competitions, the matches of the French team… It’s a question of challenge: nothing can replace major competitions in our profession. There, we are served between this World Cup and the Olympic Games next year. There is no better explanation to understand my choice.” From Monday, Hervé Renard will be hard at work, with his new staff and the 26 players he has selected.