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The French have given the world relatively little over the years – escargots, croissants, and baguettes pretty much rounded out the list, until now.  This June, during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, France has provided the story that keeps on giving, and on Monday, they continued with the generosity.

More On Anelka’s Outburst

Apparently, not only did Nicolas Anelka tell Raymond Domenech to “f— off” at halftime during the match against Mexico as we reported here, he also called his coach a “dirty son of a whore”.

Even more exciting is that Domenech’s mother went on the radio to give her thoughts on Anelka’s choice of words.

“I’d like to meet Mr. Anelka and give him a piece of my mind as a mother. It’s distressing to be insulted like that… it’s a double insult to my son and to me as his mother,” said Germaine Domenech on a radio interview.

Nico, you better stay away from home for a while. You may have been able to handle the French public, but Mrs. Domenech looks like a scary piece of business.  Don’t you remember from school that there’s nothing worse than messing with the kid who tattle tales to his mom?

The Boycotts Continue

As if boycotting their team practice on Sunday wasn’t enough, several French players are now threatening to boycott the team’s one remaining group phase match against South Africa by not playing.

While Domenech is horrible at controlling his team, he certainly has a way with words in his stinging public comments regarding the skipped practice:  “It was an aberration, an imbecility, a stupidity with no name.”

French footballing legend, Zinedine Zidane had his own thoughts: “When I was a player, I never gave my opinion on the composition of the team.  I was the captain and there was a coach above me and I respected him. I followed the rules and that’s how I think things should be.”

Ah yes, Zidane, the model citizen. Wait, isn’t this the same guy who single handedly cost his team the 2006 World Cup my headbutting Marco Materazzi during the finals?

The Reaction

It’s no secret now that Raymond Domenech is not in his players’ good books anymore.

Although somewhat understandable, this move reeks of selfishness.  Not only are they getting back at the coach, they are letting their country down, and disappointing the host nation who were very excited to see their team take on the mighty French side.

The silly thing is that they still have a chance, with a win, to move on.  Hopefully they get it together in time to at least give it a shot.

-to see more on France’s player-coach rift, click here