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France's Blanc receives two-match suspension
Posted: Thursday July 09, 1998 01:01 PM
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As well as the final, Blanc, will also miss the first qualifying
game for the 2000 European championship (Phil Cole/Allsport) |
CLAIREFONTAINE, France (Reuters)
-- France libero Laurent Blanc will miss Sunday's World Cup final against
Brazil after
being suspended for two matches on Thursday.
Blanc was sent off in the 74th minute of France's 2-1 semifinal defeat of
Croatia on
Wednesday after cuffing Croatian defender Slaven Bilic in the face. Bilic
was widely considered to have overreacted and later apologized to Blanc.
French coach Aime Jacquet said earlier on Thursday he would appeal to FIFA
over the sending-off because he felt it was unfair, although he said he was
not very optimistic.
But FIFA ruled out any appeal when it announced the sanction on Blanc
because his suspension did not exceed two matches. A red card means an
automatic suspension of one game, with any additional sanction up to FIFA's
disciplinary committee.
As well as the final, Blanc, 32, will also miss the first qualifying game
for the 2000 European championship. He will almost certainly be replaced by
Franck Leboeuf against Brazil.
Blanc, playing his first and almost certainly his last World Cup, said
earlier he had felt like punching Bilic when he said he was sorry that the
France libero would miss the final.
"He pulled my shirt and tried to block me," said Blanc. "I shouldn't have
reacted like that and I was expecting to be booked but I certainly didn't
deserve a red card.
"I didn't punch him nor elbow him, I simply pushed him back," he added.
"Bilic had what he was looking for. He came to me after the match to
apologize, saying he was sorry that I had been sent off. I felt like
punching him then."
Asked if he thought he still stood a chance of playing in the final, Blanc
was pessimistic even before the FIFA decision.
"The referee made a decision and I would be very surprised if they
overturned it," he said. "I'll just have to sit on the bench and watch the
match from there."
Jacquet said he felt sorry that Blanc, who has been outstanding throughout
the competition, would not play.
"It's sad because he's been one of our leaders for four years and he's such
a great player," he said.
After France failed to qualify for the 1994 finals in the United
States, Blanc considered ending his international career but changed
his mind after some persuasion from Jacquet.
The Marseille player refused to say whether he might retire now. "It's not
the right moment to talk about things like that," he said. "France is in
the final, they have a unique opportunity and right now, little else
matters."
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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