This Thursday, France came close to disaster in the European Cup. Engaged in the round of 32 of the Europa League, Lens, Rennes and Toulouse were eliminated after fairly frustrating encounters. At the same time, OM took the scalp of Shakhtar Donetsk and was able to advance to the round of 16 of the competition. A 1 out of 4 which has the gift of irritating Jérôme Rothen. The RMC columnist took to the airwaves of French radio this Friday and castigated the French clubs while sparing OM and PSG: “the truth is that without Paris and Marseille, we do not exist. We already have difficulty existing in Europe, it’s not because PSG and OM pass that that’s it, we think we’re big names. The problem with our French football is that it boils down too much to that. I have often defended the level of our championship, but it is indefensible this season. We’re not good, teams with big budgets are rubbish. The locomotives do not respond to be among the best championships. On the European scene, if you remove Paris and Marseille… However, we all highlighted the groups where we had been a hit and everyone had qualified. We were pleasantly surprised.”
Obviously very upset by the performances of the French on the continental scene, the former midfielder outbid himself and was particularly angry against Stade Rennais: “Paris and Marseille, we are used to seeing them in the European Cup. Maybe we get too used to them doing this, it’s their reality. When the others qualify, it’s as if they had won, it’s an event. I’m fine with that, but for you to be eliminated in the round of 16…The European Cup in Rennes, how long has it been, have you been playing? They went to Milan for sightseeing, I was ashamed. As a Frenchman, a French club that goes to a big one in Europe like Milan, which has a great history, but they went for tourism there. Fifth season, when will they grow up? It’s been five years, when will they gain experience?” Statements that should not please Brittany.
