Desailly: No reason for pessimism

The 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan™ does not hold happy memories for France. Beaten 1-0 in the Opening Match of the tournament by Senegal, the reigning world champions had little margin for error when they took on Uruguay in their second game in Busan. In need of a win to kick-start the defence of their crown, Roger Lemerre’s side were held to a sterile goalless draw that left them on the brink of elimination. A 2-0 defeat to Denmark a few days later confirmed their untimely exit from the tournament.

The man who skippered Les Bleus against the Uruguayans on that June day eight years ago was Marcel Desailly. FIFA.com spoke exclusively to the former central defender about that frustrating stalemate and gauged his views on the latest meeting between the two countries, Friday’s Group A match in Cape Town.

FIFA.com: Marcel, what are your memories of that match against Uruguay at Korea/Japan 2002?
Marcel Desailly: It was a real turning point for the golden generation of 1998-2000। The team was virtually the same, we were just as well prepared and just as motivated, and yet nothing went right. I’m a real believer in cycles and that was the end of ours. The injury to Zidane (in the final warm-up match) and the defeat to Senegal had sapped our confidence and all of a sudden everything started going against us. Nothing went our way. We had the top goalscorers in the three leading European leagues in our team and we created lots of chances. The only thing was, we just couldn’t score.

FIFA.com