FRENCH NEWS - in English of course. Politics, sports, reviews, travel, a slice of life in France and stories you might not necessarily be able to find elsewhere on the Net.
Many might (rightly) maintain that the so-called “beautiful game” ain’t exactly what it used to be.
Big bucks and “state of the art” hairdos (or “hairdon'ts) seem to count as much as on-the-pitch skills for the elite that make it to the top of the game.
And let’s not take a nightmare trip down memory lane to the “Knysna affair” at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa when the French national side threw a collective tantrum and refused to train.
It surely marked an all-time low in (French) football.
But there are exceptions of course. And perhaps it should come as no surprise that the man who recently showed such outstanding behaviour should be an Italian.
After all, it’s a country in which football is revered - even among those who don’t really follow the game.
Look at the recent Euro 2016 (held in France) when every Italian man, woman and child (enough hyperbole?) seemed to follow the fortunes of Gli Azzuri until they were knocked out at the quarterfinal stage.
Anyway, back to that man, Italy’s goalkeeper and captain and (more hyperbole perhaps - but just ask an Italian) legend, 38-year-old Gianluigi Buffon.
Gianluigi Buffon (screenshot from Rahim Abdullaev’s YouTube video)
“An example to what we should be seeing on the pitch”, said Fifa president Gianni Infantino after a friendly played on September 1 in the Italian city of Bari between the hosts and France (a game which Italy were to lose 1-3)
But what exactly had Buffon done to earn such plaudits - not only from Infantino but much of a soccer mad world.
Quite simply he had single-handedly led the response to counter booing that occurred from a small section of the crowd at the Stadio San Nicola while the French national anthem was being played before the match began.
Buffon reacted immediately, applauding La Marseillaise throughout, followed by his teammates and, it has to be said - a vast majority of those in the stadium.
Until recently the village of Marly-Gomont (population, just over 400) in the département of Aisne in northern France was probably best known for being featured in the 2006 hit of the same name by French rapper Kamini Zantoko.
It's where "Kamini", as he's professionally known, grew up, and the song was a humourous recounting of everyday life and being the only black family living in such a small community.
Well, Marly-Gomont is back in the news for the performance of its local football team, ASMG.
It wasn't just the 20-0 defeat it suffered at the hands...or perhaps that should be feet...of opponents Tupigny, but the manner in which the team lost.
And to be honest, it's refreshing proof (if it were really needed) that the so-called beautiful game is at its most authentic at the amateur level rather than that of the multi-million euro exploits of the overpaid professionals.
Proof that even (or probably) at its most amateur level, the so-called Beautiful Game.
ASMG were already 5-0 down when, after 25 minutes into the match, their goalkeeper had to leave the pitch...because he had been called away to tend to one of his cows who was about to give birth.
On the bench, there wasn't really anyone suitable to replace him, as the club's president, Alain Braghéri, explained to the local newspaper L'Aisne nouvelle.
"Fourteen of our players were absent through injury or for other reasons," he said.
"Only 12 of us had made the (20km) trip to Tupigny and of those, four weren't even 17 and didn't have senior team experience."
So with nobody around to keep goal, you've probably guessed what happened next.
It was 61-year-old Braghéri who "stepped into the breach"
And he didn't seem to be making too bad a job of things under the circumstances, letting in "just" another five goals by the end of the first half.
But when play resumed, things quickly went pear-shaped.
"Tupigny continued playing their game: short, precise passes and the 'red wave' always seemed to be surging towards me," Braghéri said.
"We suffered, that's for sure. But we tried to limit the damage and we continued playing right up until the end of the match. Tupigny even congratulated us afterwards. We could have abandoned. But what's better? To 'swallow the bitter pill' and get on with it and learn? Or to give up?"
Willy Sagnol, the manager of Ligue 1 side FC Girondins de Bordeaux, has apologised for the way in which remarks he made recently appeared to some to be racist when he suggested that African players are "powerful" but "lack technique, intelligence and discipline".
"I apologise if my comments were misinterpreted and if I offended some people," he said at a press conference on Thursday.
"I was referring on a purely sporting level and not on either a political or social one."
The 37-year-old former French international was referring to comments he made while being interviewed by the regional daily Sud Ouest earlier this week - comments that angered some.
“The advantage of the typical African player is that he isn't expensive to recruit," he said.
"He’s generally ready to fight and is powerful on the pitch.," continued Sagnol.
"But football is not just about that. It's also about technical skills, intelligence and discipline.”
The proverbial "you know what" soon hit the fan.
Lilian Thuram, a former international team mate of Sagnol's from 2000-2008, and arguably one of the most articulate men in the game, said he was both "surprised" and "disappointed" by the Bordeaux manager's comments.
"There has always been a certain prejudice about players originating from Africa, and that has always focused on strength over intelligence," said Thuram who, since he retired, has been active in the fight against both racism and discrimination.
"When you read or listen what Willy Sagnol said, you can see that it simply reinforces those preconceptions," he continued.
"That surprises me as he has never made such comments in the past. It is true, unfortunately, that we live in a country in which prejudice remain. And such comments simply strengthen that."
It strengthens them. I am extremely surprised that he can keep that kind of talk . Because , whether the national team or club , he ( Willy Sagnol ) had to play with players of African or African origin and had found that there was intelligent players , disciplined and tactically very good .
Others were less gentle in their criticism with the French anti-racist French NGO SOS Racisme calling on the Fédération française de football (the French football federation, FFF) and the minister of sports to take action and labelling Sagnols comments as, "Laid-back racism".
And Pape Diouf, the former president of Olympique de Marseille, called on all African players in Ligue 1 to boycott one day's play in the championship.
Not everyone was so incensed by Sagnol's comments - least of all the president of Bordeaux, Jean-Louis Triaud.
"We don't want to widen the scope of what was happened especially as we find it totally unjustifiable," said Triaud.
"I'm angry because anyone who knows Willy Sagnol knows he is anything but racist. The interpretation of his statement was totally wrong."
Meanwhile sports journalist Jean-Michel Larqué went a step further.
"I'm sure that Willy Sagnol was referring to the 'intelligence of the game'," he said.
"A couple of decades ago young African players were referred to as 'rough diamonds' because they had learned the game on the streets and had little knowledge on the tactical level: they didn't know 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 meant. Was that racism?"
"Let's just stop with all this polemic."
So there you have it. Sagnol's comments were clearly "laid back" or "non-racist" - depending on whose arguments you follow.
Or better still, they were accurate - as some of these Bordeaux supporters seemed to think, when questioned.
"Much ado about nothing," says the first man interviewed.
"What he says is simply the truth," says the second.
"There's a little bit of everything - African and European - in the side and there's no need to get into an argument about anything," says the third.
The bottom line?
Already expressing racist (and maybe now would be a good time for those naysayers to reach for their dictionaries to discover the definition of racism) thoughts in private is indefensible and against so much of what the so-called beautiful game has tried to combat over the past decades.
But to express them publicly is both inexcusable, ignorant and downright stupid.
In April, the football team of Luzenac Ariège Pyrénées (LAP) originally from a village of fewer than 700 inhabitants, did the unthinkable.
It won promotion from the amateur league to join the French second division and, in so doing, became the smallest club ever to qualify to compete at such a level.
It was a football fairy tale come true
The players, management and supporters were on a high, looking forward to the big time - well, relatively speaking.
LAP celebrate after securing promotion to Ligue 2 in April (screenshot i>Télé report)
But as we all know - and as British comedian and political satirist John Oliver so sardonically reminded us in his excellent piece on HBO about the World Cup and Fifa - the so-called "beautiful game" is as much about business as it is about sport.
In fact, some might go as far as to say that, in terms of importance, the financial side has far outstripped the sporting one both on and off the pitch.
And so it has proven for LAP, whose chances of playing this coming season in Ligue 2 remain in the balance even though a tribunal has just ruled in its favour, hours before the August 1 kick off.
Finances - or apparent lack of them - have been at the centre of the club's problems.
Both the professional Football league (Ligue de Football Professionnel, LFP), through its Direction nationale du contrôle de gestion (DNCG) - the body which oversees clubs' finances, and the Le Comité National Olympique et Sportif Français Olympic committee dismissed LAP's right to promotion.
They claimed - through their lawyers of course - that during the 2013-14 seaso, the club's management took a DIY approach to its finances and failed to produce balanced books by the June 30 deadline.
Meanwhile LAP's management maintained, on its official website, that it was very much in the black, had had its books audited properly and had met all the regulatory requirements imposed by the LFP.
A tribunal in Toulouse heard arguments from both sides on Wednesday July 30, finally ruling in the club's favour on Friday August 1 - the very day the new season kicked off for Ligue 2.
But that is far from being the end of the story - of course.
Because LAP still has yet another hurdle to overcome before it can be allowed to play a match.
The club will have to appear before the DNCG once again, within the next eight days, when a final decision will be taken.
So for the moment, its players and staff will have to wait and watch from the sidelines as the division's other 20 teams begin their campaigns.
All right, so "dilemma" might be a little bit of an exaggeration.
But hey. It's football (and politics). And hyperbole is pretty much par for the course in both domains.
All the same, how about "quandary"?
Yup, "François Hollande's World Cup quandary".
You see, the French president can't have helped but notice the increasing popularity of Les Bleus during their first three games of the World Cup tournament in Brazil, especially after their convincing wins against Honduras and Switzerland (we'll forget that goalless draw with 10-man Ecuador).
The talk in the French media was about "team spirit" and "the players' pride in representing their country" with the folk back home tuning in by the millions to follow their exploits on telly.
Ah yes. Apparently the French had (and have) falllen in love with their football team once again: to such an extent that some people actually see them as being capable of winning the whole thing.
Meanwhile Hollande watches from the sidelines, or the Elysée palace - just as he did during a soirée he organised; the sumptuous setting and giant-sized screen more "gauche" than "bling bling" and rather spoilt by his constant (caught-on -camera) snacking throughout the game.
Still, "President Normal" and all that.
Anyway, that's all an aside (and a long-winded one at that).
The "quandary" for the French president is when and, indeed even, if he should make an appearance in Brazil, and how that might be interpreted.
Of course, Hollande doesn't have the same sort of PR savvy as the German chancellor Angela Merkel.
She's an "old hand", so to speak, at managing to show how "in touch" she is with what makes a footballing nation tick (during the World Cup) and could be seen in the stands during Germany's opening game, cheering on die Mannschaft as they made mincemeat of Portugal.
Angela Merkel at the World Cup (screenshot Newsloop video YouTube)
And to top it off, Merkel then had a photo op' in the dressing room with the players.
Smart lady - and smart move.
Hollande, in contrast, was last seen with the French squad in Clairefontaine as they prepared for their World Cup campaign.
There was plenty of humour, although it all looked a little awkward at times during the photoshoot with the players which left the president looking rather...er...portly and "buffoonly".
But that's perhaps being unfair as there's nothing wrong with not being quite the right shape. After all, how many of us really are?
Since then, nothing much. Well just that ostentatious "soirée". And no real sign that Hollande is about to fly to Brazil to support Les Bleus.
Yes, he has a packed agenda - most political leaders do. But he could have followed Merkel's example and "played safe" by putting in an appearance during the group stage.
After all, the tournament and the group match schedules were published months ago.
Instead Hollande now faces the risk of turning up during the knock out stage when his presence at the country's defeat (should it happen) could well be interpreted as a "jink".
Yes it's (more than) a stretch of the imagination, and there's no way that Hollande's attendance would contribute to the outcome, but that wouldn't stop the more unkindly drawing a link between the two.
Apparently the French president has pencilled in a "surprise (you have to wonder how much of one it will be) visit" should Les Bleus make it through to the quarterfinals after their next match against Nigeria.
The only problem (oh, life can be so cruel sometimes) is that if all goes true to form and planning, France's opponents in the quarterfinal match would be...Germany.
Yes the World Cup - warts (Fifa) and all - is a major sporting event.
There's no doubting that.
But really, does it mean our elected leaders can afford to forget the really important things happening in the world to ride - albeit briefly - the crest of the feelgood wave they hope might somehow benefit them?
Well, the German chancellor Angela Merkel hot-footed it over to Brazil to watch "die Mannshaft" make clinical mincemeat of Portugal (with a little help from an imploding Pepe early into the game)
Back in France as the country limps through its economic muddle, now complete with the inevitable industrial ("non") action from SNCF employees and les intermittents du spectacle, how did the president François Hollande spend his time during Les Bleus' opening game?
He ostentatiously invited 200 people (and the cameras) to la salle des fêtes at the Elysée palace to gawp ("with collective passion") at a giant screen as France ran out victorious over mighty Honduras in their first match.
Giant screen at the Elysée palace (screenshot BFM TV)
Oh well. Winter is months away, so why should politicians care about gas supplies right now?
Perhaps the football commentators will help jog their memories by broaching the subject during Russia's first game against South Korea on Tuesday!
Nigeria kicked off its tournament on Monday with a thrilling 0-0 draw against Iran, and in the meantime the 200 or so missing schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram in April are still being held hostage. They've been located apparently, but still haven't been freed.
Never mind. Who gives a damn anyway?
French TV news reports spend an inordinate amount of time analysing and speculating on the Les Bleus' chances, interviewing individual French players and managers - past and present - wheeling in the "experts" to give their opinions and asking the man and the woman in the street what they think.
And at the same time Sunni Islamist militants have taken control of Iraq's second city Mosul and are now approaching Baghdad.
The world watches - says little and does nothing as the focus of media attention seems to be elsewhere.
And that "elsewhere" of course is Brazil - the host country, profiting from the glory and the money it's not going to make and the prestige the whole tournament will bring as an answer to its social problems.
Just ask South Africa, the host of the 2010 tournament.
Don't get me wrong. I love the so-called beautiful game. But I also care about other things.
And a World Cup which is as much about business and displays of exaggerated patriotism (whatever that might be) as it is sport, surely simply deflects attention away from those other things that really matter.
Nothing could be worse than the Eurovision Song Contest (and epsecially the French entries) when it comes to music, could it?
Think again - and not too hard. Because the answer to a somewhat loaded question (and what would under other circumstances surely be purely rhetorical) comes in the title of this week's Friday's French music break "On veut la coupe sur les Champs Élysées".
It's the unofficial "anthem" of the French team for this year's World Cup and a timely choice as the whole shebang is set to kick off in São Paulo on June 12 with hosts Brazil taking on Croatia in the first match of the tournament.
To accompany Les Bleus in their attempts to forget the nightmare that was Knysna four years ago in South Africa, French opera and Broadway musical baritone (and all round showman according to his official bio) David Serero has teamed his tonsils with those of "un collectif d'artistes anonymes" to produce a song which is presumably meant to inspire the team's performance on the pitch and drum up enthusiasm among fans back home.
Quite frankly though, it could well have the opposite effect - prompting the players to run back to their dressing room in embarrassment (should they have the misfortune to hear it in the first place) and leaving supporters in no doubt that the Eurovision result (two points and last place, remember) was not a one-off when it comes to appreciating French music.
It's meant to be a "festive" offering with a sunny Caribbean-South American beat and flavour but the result is just a mess.
The 33-year-old Serero might well have a voice well-suited to opera and popular standards (the latter is a matter of opinion) but when set among the cacophony that is ""On veut la coupe sur les Champs Élysées" he just sounds...well ridiculous and slightly off-key to boot.
All right. If your ears are up to it, here's the song.
How many seconds will you be able to endure?
Let's just hope that Benzema, Giroud, Ribéry and co prove more effective on the pitch than Serero and others did in the studio.
It's a touching tale, guaranteed to warm the cockles of any football fan's heart and probably those who usually aren't in the least bit interested - the rise and rise of Luzenac Ariège Pyrénées, LAP (formerly Union Sportive de Luzenac).
Forget all that high profile Qatari cash bankrolling a horde of international stars at Paris Saint-Germain as they attempt (with a degree of success) to buy themselves trophies.
Ignore all those Russian rubles Dmitry Rybolovlev is pouring into AS Monaco in an effort to keep pace with the excesses at PSG.
The real heart of the so-called "beautiful game" in France is, for the moment, alive and kicking elsewhere.
Because in the best traditions of fictional UK comic team Melchester Rovers, LAP have just won promotion to the French second division.
No mean feat for a team originally from a village with fewer than 700 inhabitants who don't have a stadium large enough for the big time rigours of the professional league and in 2010 were on the verge of bankruptcy.
LAP celebrate after securing promotion to Ligue 2 (screenshot i>Télé report)
Their financial fortunes changed in 2011 when they were saved by Toulouse-based businessman Jérôme Ducros the following year.
He called on 1998 World Cup winning international Fabien Barthez (also originally from the département of Ariège) to act as honorary president and later general director to give the club a more professional approach to recruitment of players and staff.
And under trainer Christophe Pélissier, who has been with the club for the past seven years, LAP have moved through the ranks of amateur and regional divisions to become the smallest team to make it to the Ligue 2.
"If you had told me when I started at the club that Luzenac would be playing in Ligue 2 seven years later, I would have laughed at you," he said in an interview.
"But that's exactly what has happened...even though we still have a few problems coming to terms with it."
LAP trainer Christophe Pélissier (screenshot from official website
Luzenac's recent 1-0 win over US Boulogne was enough to give them the necessary points to secure promotion.
But as something of a poignant reminder about how fickle football fortunes can be, it's perhaps worth remembering that just a few years ago, Boulogne were playing in Ligue 1 alongside the likes of PSG and Monaco.
Let's talk football (or soccer, if you like) for a moment with just a dash of political "intrigue".
Sunday saw the so-called return "Classico", "Classique" "Derby" or whatever you wish to call it, of the season between arguably the country's two most popular (in terms of fan base at least) teams.
Paris-Saint Germain (PSG) entertaining arch rivals (bring out the sporting clichés) Olympique de Marseille (OM) at home with the Qatari-owned club (that's PSG, just in case you were wondering) running out the winners 2-0.
Over 45,000 attended the match - almost full capacity - at Parc des Princes.
And as entertaining perhaps as events on the pitch was the chance to people-spot as the Good, the Bad and the Ugly from all walks of "celebrity" life took their places.
They included (in no particular order) singer Julien Doré, entrepreneur (yes, they do exist in France) Jacques-Antoine Granjon - the president and CEO of Vente-Privée.com, radio and TV presenter Cyril Hanouna, Olympic medal winning judoka Teddy Riner, PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and OM president Vincent Labrune (not seated together obviously), , Swedish former model Helena Seger dutifully watching her partner Zlatan Ibrahimović, and many, many more.
Also out in force were those "darlings" of the press - both serious and...er less so, in recent years - French politicians.
They included Paris mayor hopefuls Anne Hildalgo (Socialist party) and her main challenger, centre-right Union pour un Mouvement Populaire (Union for a Popular Movement, UMP) candidate Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet.
Well even if neither was that interested, with just a few weeks until Parisians (and the rest of the country for that matter) go to the polls in the local elections, both women had at least to show willing.
The education minister, Vincent Peillon was also present as was the man so warmly welcomed by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel last week during a private tête-à-tête in Berlin last week, followed by a speech at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung broadcast live on BFM TV.
Nicolas Sarkozy at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (screenshot BFM TV)
Yes, the former French president, and a declared PSG fan, Nicolas Sarkozy was at the game (accompanied by a couple of his sons) to press the flesh and flash his face while sharing a relaxed moment or two with those sat next to him.
One of whom - was...well, who do you think?
The photographs are under copyright, but before you click on this link or this one, hazard a guess at who appeared to be so "chummy" with the former president.
Hint, he has been described as "a Socialist Sarkozy".
Before you get your hopes up too high, this is not a piece disclosing a scandal involving the French president François Hollande and the Algerian-born former prostitute Zahia Dehar.
There's no "liaison" - illicit or otherwise - between the two other than the fact that both appeared on French television on Sunday evening.
Hollande was invited by host Thomas Sotto onto M6's fortnightly economics magazine "Capital".
François Hollande (screenshot "Capital" M6)
And Zahia (first name only as that's the one by which she is best known) had a 13-minute one-on-one interview with Thierry Demaizière on TF1's much lighter weekly show "Sept à huit".
Different time slots admittedly for the two programmes and very different content and contrasting fortunes in terms of viewing figures.
Hollande was keeping a presidential campaign promise he made in the run-up to the May 2012 elections when he first appeared on "Capital" and promised Sotto to return if elected.
There was plenty to talk about since the two men had last appeared together on the programme and Hollande was quizzed on a number of issues including, among other things (Le Figaro has helpfully provided a transcript of the "best of" moments complete with videos if you're so inclined), pensions, unemployment, public spending cuts, the future of Stéphane Richard at the head of Orange and, as the news broke, his reaction to the Socialist party being knocked out in the first round of the by-election to find a successor to the disgraced former budget minister Jérôme Cahuzac.
Meaty political and economic stuff for sure and, although important in the grand scheme of things, hardly gripping viewing.
Meanwhile a few hours earlier over on TF1, the much more appealing subject of sex had reared its head as Demaizière questioned the woman, who four years ago at the age of 17, had been at the centre the underage prostitution scandal with French football internationals Franck Ribéry and Karim Benzema.
Zahia (screenshot from TF1 "Sept à huit" interview)
Nice timing as the case will be heard in Paris's criminal court on Tuesday in what The Guardiancalls, "A tale of footballers, sex and the Paris catwalk."
It was, in the words of "Sept à huit" presenter Harry Roselmack who introduced the report, "a revealing and sometimes touching portrait" in which the now 21-year-old proved herself to be more than just a "living doll with voluptuous curves."
Zahia was now "all grown up" and able to talk frankly and articulately (???) about her childhood in Algeria, her time spent as an underage "courtesan" (a term she preferred to that of "call girl") and how she had managed to rebuild her life after "that" scandal to become the model and businesswoman she is today.
Yes it was rivetting stuff, slickly put together and so much more interesting than watching several hours of bumbling Hollande trying to explain his way out of the proverbial paper bag.
And the viewing figures pretty much told the whole story of what really grabs people's attention.
Just over 2.8 million tuned in to watch their president live on TV, while 3.2 million were in front of their screens to see and hear and shed a tear with the comeback story of a modern-day Cinderella.
Here's a thought. Perhaps Zahia's communications people could help Hollande's communications people boost his popularity ratings.
If you've been following the news this week, then you've probably seen the "celebrations that turned sour" when violence broke out on the streets of Paris as the city's football team Paris-Saint-Germain and its fans marked the club's first league title in 19 years.
The contrast couldn't have been greater to similar parades organised in England and Spain for their championship-winning teams Manchester United and Barcelona.
And although not all was apparently as calm in Manchester as perhaps the French media portrayed it, the scenes were nothing to match those that occurred in Paris.
It was well documented because so many French media outlets had teams "on the ground" reporting "en direct" almost as though they were willing, or at least expecting, something to happen.
And as we all know, it did.
But while the French media was pretty thorough in covering the whole debacle as it happened, it hasn't had as much success persuading the country's politicians to take their part of the blame for what happened.
The interior minister, Manuel Valls, appeared on radio and television, "condemning the violence" (well, he's hardly going to praise it now, is he?) and saying it showed that football, and in particular in the capital, was "ill".
And when asked by the mild-mannered and inoffensive anchor Gilles Bouleau on Tuesday's edition of TF1's evening news whether he, as minister in charge of the "forces of law and order" was willing to take his share of the responsibility for what had happened just as Frédéric Thiriez, the president of the French league Frédéric Thiriez had done, Valls delivered a sermon befitting of a politician eager to pass the buck.
"There were enough police present," he insisted, refusing to accept any blame even though viewers had just seen footage of riot police abandoning their positions when some of the worst scenes of violence broke out and deciding not to intervene when a coach carrying tourists was attacked.
"It was a minority of vandals intent on causing trouble who set others off," he maintained.
"There's violence in our society and there were those present who didn't just want to spoil the celebrations. They were there to fight, to steal and to vandalise."
Faced with a politician "singing" from such a well-prepared hymn sheet, Bouleau clearly had no chance of gaining even the slightest admission of accountability.
Mind you, the team on "La Matinale" on Canal + fared no better the following morning with the sports minister Valérie Fourneyron, even though collectively they were certainly more pugnacious in their questioning - or at least they tried to be.
Fourneyron refused point blank to respond directly to sports journalist Sylvère-Henry Cissé when he said it was hard to believe that "nobody could have anticipated trouble" (and thereby implying politicians had some part to play in what happened) given the number of pre-celebration preparations that had taken place.
"Those responsible for what happened were the vandals themselves who transformed the celebrations into a riot," she said, trotting out exactly the same "explanation" as Valls had done the previous evening and talking over Cissé's attempts to get her admit at least partial responsibility.
Instead Fourneyron preferred to repeat (from nine minutes and 24 seconds in the video below) that the "celebrations had been spoilt" and the penalties for those who had been arrested would have to be harsh.
Yes, it really was just like watching and hearing Valls II.
As the show's host Ariane Massenet summed it up, for Fourneyron (and by extension Valls and the government) what had happened was solely the fault of those vandals who had caused the violence. End of story.
As you might know France took on Spain in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday evening.
Much of the talk here before the match was characterised by speculating on the chances of Les Bleus beating the reigning World and double European champions.
After all in their previous match last Friday, France had convincingly beaten Georgia 3-1 while Spain had dropped a point in a 1-1 draw at home to Finland.
Oh yes and let's not forget that when France and Spain met in October 2012, the game finished in a 1-1 draw.
Reason to be optimistic then and everyone in France was hopeful of a win.
All that is apart from one notable exception - the country's "normal" president François Hollande.
The man his staff at the Elysée palace apparently refer to "affectionately" as "pépère" was in suitably fine laid-back form as he appeared at a press conference alongside Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy on the same day as the match.
Mariano Rajoy and François Hollande (screenshot i>Télé)
The two men had been discussing pressing matters such as the economic crisis and the rise in unemployment throughout Europe and of course took questions on those and other subjects.
But towards the end there was also a lighter moment when they were asked for their predictions for the evening's encounter on the pitch - after all they would be attending the game together.
And Hollande, appearing fittingly small fry with Rajoy towering next to him, gave perhaps the most telling of responses as he said, "For lots of reasons the best result for France would be a draw."
"Non mais allo quoi," to quote TV reality star Nabilla's popular catchphrase.
This was the French president speaking wasn't it?
Isn't it kinda, like, all right for a country's leader to show a little more support and enthusiasm for a national side in any sport?
Rajoy had no such problems as he answered the same question.
"If you don't mind, I don't agree," he said.
"I think the best result would be a win for Spain."
Ah well, "pépère" is only living up to his reputation of not wanting to offend anyone isn't he?
It bodes well for his planned live interview with TV news anchor David Pujadas on France 2 on Thursday evening.
As you go about your business this week, spare a thought for Zlatan Ibrahimović.
For those of you not so familiar with French football, he's the striker for whom the owners of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), the Qatar Investment Authority, splashed out a hefty €23 million in transfer fees to AC Milan back in July and whose take home pay is said to be as much as €14 million annually (although it has recently been revised downwards to a mere nine million euros)
After a slow start, the investment is beginning to pay off - well at least in terms of his performance on the pitch.
The 30-year-old has scored seven goals so far in the team's first six games in Ligue 1 and his presence at the club has undoubtedly captured the imagination of many a fan and sent politicians and the media into a predictable frenzy.
But while he's initially living up to his starring role in the multi-million euro set-up, away from the pitch, not everything appears to be as it should.
Why?
Well it's simple really. With so much lovely take home pay, Ibrahimović hasn't actually got a home to which he can take it.
That's right - he's currently homeless - or in French "Sans domicile fixe".
Along with his other half, actress-model Helena Seger and their two young children, the Swedish international is apparently having problems finding a suitable pad in the French capital and instead is having to "slum" it at a place which is described in its own blurb as "representing the ultimate in French luxury and refinement".
Hardly what could be described as a half-way house, the prestigious Hôtel Le Bristol with the "cheapest" (inverted commas definitely needed) room costing €850 a night (download the PDF file of room rates for a real shock) and a continental breakfast setting back those with more money than sense €35, is the temporary abode for the family of four with PSG footing (ouch - sorry) the bill.
Of course for some extra much-needed publicity, Ibrahimović could call on the services of French telly's best-known estate agent Stéphane Plaza whose programme on M6 "Recherche appartement ou maison" regularly helps families find the "property of their dreams"
But for the moment "Ibracadabra" as he's often nicknamed, doesn't seem in too much of a hurry.
"Paris is a fantastic city with plenty of history," he said wisely at a recent press conference.
"And if things continue as they've started with my living in the hotel, I'll perhaps end up by buying it," he continued none too seriously when the subject of house hunting was broached.
"Or I'll live in the Eiffel Tower and arrive at training sessions by parachute."
Aha, the man seems to have just right sort of preposterous solution to his housing needs.
Word has it on the sporting grapevine that the so-called Beautiful Game in France is about to receive a much-needed financial boost and an overhaul to the rules.
The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is believed to have put forward a proposal for a multi-million buyout of the entire board of the Fédération française de football (French football federation, FFF) - the sport's governing body in this country.
It's a move which some commentators say would not only be good for the business of the sport in France, it would also raise the profile of Ligue 1 to match that of some of the other top championships around Europe.
Among the propositions believed to be on the table are the injection of cash to Ligue 1 clubs in proportion to their current expenditure on the transfer market and exclusive QIA-sponsorship of referees and linesman.
QIA is of course the majority shareholder in Paris Saint-German, a club in which it bought a controlling interest last year.
Since then it has hired big names such as former Brazil international Leonardo as director of football and Italian Carlo Ancelotti as manager.
It has also invested heavily in recruiting players, spending millions in the process - all in the name of sport of course and to build a side capable of winning domestic and, more importantly, European trophies.
The strategy didn't quite pay off last season though as PSG only managed to finish runners-up to the much more modest spending champions Montpellier.
Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimović (screenshot YouTube video)
But that hasn't stopped QIA from dipping even further into its coffers ahead of the new season which kicks off on August 10, stumping up a miserly €46 million to sign Brazil's international defender Thiago Silva from Italy's AC Milan.
Spare a thought for the 27-year-old when you next check your bank balance, because he'll have to struggle with annual after-tax earnings of just €9 million to €12.5 million (depending on which reports you read) for the next five years - should he last that long at the club.
PSG is also reportedly in talks with another AC Milan player, the Swedish international striker, Zlatan Ibrahimović.
"Everyone is beginning to understand that PSG is becoming a major player in the game," manager Carlo Ancelotti commented on news of Silva's signing after his team had drawn 2-2 with CSKA Moscow in in a pre-season tournament in Austria at the weekend.
"That's the message," he said.
Clearly Ancelotti, PSG and most importantly QIA ain't kidding.
Whatever you might think of the French football team's behaviour during and just after Euro 2012, one thing's for sure.
Each and every player was under close(r) media scrutiny especially after those infamous events in the disastrous World Cup campaign in South Africa back in 2010.
Their gestures, comments and reaction were interpreted and analysed to the nth degree and unfortunately the performance on the pitch didn't really live up to most commentators' expectations.
Or perhaps it did.
There was the usual (so far) fruitless polemic (the French just love that word) which seems to have been as short-lived as the team's campaign, but will doubtless rear its in the not-too-distant future as the former manager, Laurent Blanc is made a scapegoat for all the teams woes and unbridled hope is invested in his successor.
Overpaid, spoilt brats, ill-educated, lack of team spirit: all descriptions used and lapped up by the media to report the story of Les Bleus.
Heck the team and Samir Nasri's exploits in particular, even made the front cover of one paper not usually given to following the feats of national sporting teams.
The far-right weekly Minute running with a photograph of Nasri and the headline, "They've once again tainted the blue jersey."
Set aside for a moment your personal views on their behaviour as reported in much of the press. You would hope and think that the main television and radio bulletins would manage to report the facts, accurately and without necessarily commenting on them.
Leave that to the experts and the specialists hey? Those from whom you would expect and welcome in-depth analysis.
Aha. But that's not taking into account the talents of one of the country's leading news readers to share with viewers what he surely considers the benefit of his opinion.
He presents the weekday lunchtime news on TF1 and is described in his Wikipedia entry (so it MUST be right) as a "news reader and broadcaster" (no mention of journalist) who "combines an avuncular (great word that) personality and authoritative delivery (really?)" that has made him one of France's most popular news readers."
There's little doubt that his "show" - because that's what the lunchtime new tends to be focussing as it does on fluffier, regional pieces rather than hard news - attracts viewers and has an appeal.
That might say more about what the French enjoy as they digest their meals and it's definitely an approach which Pernaut has nurtured and encouraged during his 20 years + tenure and in his role as editor-in-chief.
Objective, balanced and unbiased journalism though are characteristics which often fail as he sees fit to comment - albeit briefly - on the events, clips and reports he's introducing.
Yep, Pernaut, who let's face it is nothing more than a very high profile continuity announcer (or in French terms an up-to-date version of that emblematic figure of television in its early days here - the Speakerine" only in the male form so without the "e"), has a penchant for sharing what he thinks about a story.
And that's exactly what he did once again this past week when reporting the result of the previous night's quarterfinal between Italy and England, with the Italians qualifying for the semis.
Pernaut managed, in his own inimitable style to pass his wonderfully arrogant judgement as an "informed" sports reporter on the French team's behaviour.
He didn't turn round and say straight out what he thought.
That would have been unprofessional. Tut, tut.
Oh no, Pernaut - his own-editor-in-chief remember so ultimately answerable to...himself, was far more snarky than that.
"It was a great game between two teams proud to carry the colours of their nation," he said about the Italy- England game.
And he followed that up later in the report when referring to the Italian players' decision not to lay claim to the match bonuses with, "Fortunately there are countries where players have education and good manners!"
So there you have it.
Jean-Pierre Pernaut, 62 years old (with hair apparently looking as though it's couple of decades younger) and at the helm of the lunchtime news since 1988, once again proving there's nothing like objectivity in journalism and still a place for an opinionated Speakerin on French telly.
And the 25-year-old didn't only agree to quite literally get his kit off (well some of it) to pose for the camera, he also gave an interview in which he said he "would be delighted if his gesture could help change the mentality of some involved in the game."
"I don't see any difference between a gay person and a straight one," he told the magazine, whose readers had already voted him the game's sexiest player back in January.
And he saw no problem in posing for Têtu which he described as "a magazine just like any other".
All right so, the world of (French) football probably isn't going to change dramatically because Giroud strikes a few topless poses and appears comfortable saying something others involved in the game wouldn't, won't or can't.
But surely it sends out all sorts of positive signals.
After all not only is Giroud a French international (with three caps so far and recently named by coach Laurent Blanc as a member of the provisional squad to take part in Euro 2012), he's also part of this season's championship winning team Montpellier and was Ligue 1's leading goal scorer.
He found the back of the net 21 times - equal with Paris-Saint Germain's Brazilian-born winger Nenê.
But as fewer of his goals came from the penalty spot (just two compared to Nenê's nine) it was Giroud who was "crowned" the Ligue's top scorer.
Homosexuality is still very much a taboo subject in football in France and in spite of campaign to combat it, homophobia remain an integral part of the mindset.
On more than one occasion Montpellier's team owner, Louis Nicollin, has made blatantly homophobic statements.
In 2010 amateur football club FC Chooz refused to renew Yoann Lemaire's contract after he came out even though the mayor of the village in eastern France had signed the "Charter against homophobia".
And in the 2011 book "Sexe football club" a top-ranked player, on condition of anonymity, describedto journalists Bruno Godard and Jérôme Jessel the difficulties involved for him in coming out publicly and how widespread homophobia was in the game.
Montpellier have proven that the so-called Beautiful Game isn't all about money by winning the French Ligue title.
They came from behind to beat already-relegated Auxerre 2-1 in their last match of the season, clinching the title three points ahead of their nearest rivals Paris-Saint Germain, PSG.
Montpellier supporters celebrate (screenshot France 24 match report)
In doing so, Montpellier not only rewrote club history by winning the championship for the first time, they also delivered an important reminder that seems to be forgotten in these days where cash speaks.
Football, soccer, call it what you will, doesn't just have to be all about money. It can still be about team spirit.
You see in a game which sees top players earning obscene amounts and often having little or no loyalty to a club, preferring instead to chase the big bucks, Montpellier are something of an anomaly or maybe even an anachronism.
Owned since 1974 by the somewhat larger-than-life French businessmen Laurent Nicollin, Montpellier Hérault Sport Club, to give them their full name, have a less than glowing history.
Sure they've produced some famous players - such as current national manager and former World Cup and Euro 2000 winner Laurent Blanc - and seen the likes of Eric Cantona or Cameroon's Roger Milla take to the field in their colours
But their sporting success to date has been somewhat modest.
On the domestic front they've been division two champions three times, twice French Cup winners (1929 and 1990) and once Coupe de la Ligue winners (1992). Internationally - well their only claim to fame was as one of three winners now defunct UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1999.
When it comes to money, Montpellier simply can't splash out as much as many other clubs in the French Ligue.
Of the 20 teams, They ranked only 13th in terms of spending in this year's transfer market.
Spend wisely, nurture talent nobody else seems to want such as striker Olivier Giroud and build a team spirit seem to have been the real keys to success which as manager René Girard says produce a club which, "invests in its players, is a squad of friends and proves that money cannot buy happiness."
And the irony of the whole thing is that PSG, runners-up this year, are everything that Montpellier aren't.
Last year Qatar Investment Authority became PSG's controlling shareholder in the club, and since then they sunk millions into the club.
They've hired big names such as former Brazil international Leonardo as director of football and Italian Carlo Ancelotti as manager to run the club and spent invested heavily in recruiting players.
In the process of trying to make PSG a world class side in terms of results, QIA managed to make the club the third biggest spender in the world.
The latter doesn't always ensure the former - not immediately at least - as PSG have learned this season.
And that's why Montpellier's title is so bloody refreshing.
It might not last and the team nicknamed La Paillade could well struggle in the the Champions League next season - but what the heck. They've got the title and PSG haven't;
It was the stuff of dreams as the then fourth division side took on the giants of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), dreaming of a place in the final.
Les Canaris from the suburbs of the northern French city of Rouen had already beaten three higher-ranked teams before their semi-final appearance, but in spite of a brave performance their efforts were not rewarded and they lost 1-0 to PSG, the team that would go on to win the competition.
So no fairytale ending to a marvellous cup run back in 2010 and the hopes of making only their second cup final appearance (the first and only one was back in 1927) dashed.
But guess what.
Union Sportive Quevillaise have made it through to the final this time around after stunning first division side Stade Rennes 2-1 in the semis.
And they did it the hard way, coming from a goal down and scoring a late winner into stoppage time to book their place in this year's final against Olympique Lyonnais.
"After scoring I was on cloud nine," Anthony Laup, the man who sent Quevilly into the final, told reporters.
Anthony Laup - the man who scored the winner (screenshot BFM TV)
"But I'm sure the best is still to come - that's a promise," he said.
The team, currently lying 14th in the 20-strong National, the country's third division, had already beaten another of France's most titled sides, Olympique de Marseille, in the quarter-finals.
And Rennes knew exactly what to expect from the team that had knocked them out of the competition in the last-sixteen stage two years ago.
At a press conference after the game, their manager Frédéric Antonetti congratulated Quevilly on a deserved win but he couldn't hide his disappointment.
"It was the kind of game that was lost psychologically," he told reporters.
"Fear crept into our game and although we scored first, we just lacked any sort of personality on the field."
That, of course, was far from the feeling in the Quevilly dressing room or the Stade Michel-d'Ornano in the northern French city of Caen, where the game was played.
The players were already dreaming of their appearance at Stade de France in Paris on April
And a firework display lit the night sky to celebrate what one of the regional newspapers described as the incredible exploits of the side.
The final against Lyon will be played at Stade de France in Paris on April 28.
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