Deprived of Zinédine Zidane, victim of a muscle injury a few days before the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, would the French team, world champion 98, have done better at the Asian World Cup with Robert Pirès in number 10 ? The attacking midfielder revealed at FC Metz, 98 world champion and decisive passer on David Trezeguet’s golden goal during the Euro 2000 final against Italy, had seriously injured his knee, while he was at the top of his game, scoring 15 goals in all competitions and even 16 assists that season!
It was on March 23, 2002 that Pirès’ career took a big blow, at the age of 28, during an FA Cup quarter-final against Newcastle. Arsène Wenger’s left midfielder opened the scoring from the start, well served by Dennis Bergkamp, before being the decisive passer for the Dutch genius seven minutes later. Untenable on the Highbury pitch, the former Marseillais then avoided a tackle from a Magpies defender to secure a corner for the Gunners. The reception is poor. This is the tragedy. Seeing the suffering of the native of Reims, a serious injury was feared at the time.
Robert Pirès: “you have to be a philosopher”
Two days later, Robert Pirès came to Clairefontaine to announce his rupture of an anterior cruciate ligament. “I’m not going to cry about my fate. That’s how it is. There are times when you have to be philosophical. Until now, I had been spared injuries”launched the player, as reported The World. He did not hide behind the hellish sequence of matches for Arsenal, explaining as follows: “When I jump, I’m not ready to land. I’m not strong enough in my head. There is a moment of inattention ».
At the other end of Eurasia, in Seoul, Roger Lemerre’s Blues fell in the opening match against Senegal (0-1), on a goal from Papa Bouba Diop. Youri Djorkaeff, 34, then at Bolton, played behind David Trezeguet. Six days later, it was Johan Micoud who was lined up at number 10, but Thierry Henry left his teammates at 10 in the 25th minute and the reigning world champions only drew 0-0. On June 11, 2002, finally, with a diminished “Zizou”, France was eliminated in the first round, losing to Denmark (2-0).
