France coach Laurent Blanc admits he thought about resigning in light of the recent quota scandal.
France boss thought about leaving over quota scandal
France coach Laurent Blanc admits he thought about resigning in light of the recent quota scandal.
Blanc was cleared of any wrongdoing by a French Football Federation (FFF) inquiry and by the sports minister Chantal Jouanno.
The controversy emerged after a meeting last year between Blanc, FFF technical director Francois Blaquart, who is still suspended, Under-21 coach Erick Mombaerts and Under-20 coach Francis Smerecki.
At the meeting the issue of using players with dual nationality was raised - with African and Arab players discussed.
Plans reportedly were made to limit to 30 per cent the number of players of African and North African descent in academies once they reached the age of 13.
The idea was to reduce the number of players who go through France's junior ranks before later deciding to play for another country.
Resigning
After the whole furore, Blanc admits he thought about stepping down.
"[Resigning] crossed my mind, yes, I must admit it," Blanc said.
"Becoming coach and then going through that kind of situation, you don't become a coach for that. But I think resigning would not have been the right answer.
"I would like to say sorry for the words that were said during this meeting. It's true this meeting got a bit out of hand."
But despite this Blanc still insists they need to investigate the issue of players playing for other countries after being raised in the French system.
"In my opinion, you have to try and eradicate it. And this has no racist connotation whatsoever," he added.
"After what happened in South Africa, it is important for me and French Football to go on.
"We have to be present during 2012 Euro and become again competitive amongst the elite in Europe."
