Dunne: Domenech ‘messes up’ the French team

Republic of Ireland defender Richard Dunne launched an attack on France coach Raymond Domenech. The Aston Villa defender doesn’t understand why Domenech ‘s still at the helm of the French national team. Next Saturday, both countries will start their battle for a World Cup 2010 ticket. Dunne decided to start the mind games ahead of the first of two make-or-break games.

“Every time a tournament comes round, they have all these world-class players and then a man who seems intent on messing them up,” Dunne told The Guardian. “Over the last World Cups and European Championships, things have not run smoothly for France. Domenech’s management could be a weakness or it could be a big smokescreen.”

Domenech’s often odd behaviour – not least when he famously proposed to his girlfriend on national television after a France defeat – and his poor record mean he is far from popular at home.

That was borne out this week when he took his players to the Paris Masters tennis tournament, and was booed by the crowd once recognised.

“You can see the reaction of the people at the tennis, when they put his face on the big screen,” Dunne added. “The whole place just booed him and his own players laughed at him.”

Ireland and France lock horns in Dublin before the teams meet in Paris on Wednesday.

“We know that if we can get in front, they probably have not got the man at the top to pull them back around,” Dunne explained.

“Over the last World Cups and European Championships, they were always lucky and got through. Maybe it’s time that we put a stop to that.”