Ousted from his position as coach of the France Espoirs team on July 31, Sylvain Ripoll will not participate in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. “Of course I wanted to go,” said Thierry Henry’s predecessor in an interview with Ouest-France. After six years at the head of the Bleuets, ending with a failure in the quarter-final of the Euro against Ukraine this summer, the former coach of FC Lorient returned in detail to the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, competition in from which France exited in the first round.
“When I sometimes hear that these 2021 Olympics are being put at the forefront of my assessment at the head of the Hopes… At best it is bad faith, at worst intellectual dishonesty, he defended himself. We must see the conditions in which this happened. I couldn’t control anything, because the clubs didn’t want to release their players. On the eve of the announcement of the official list, we only had eleven players and we had to request several waivers to extend the selection deadline. Otherwise, we were forfeited. We then had to cancel half of the preparation: the internships in Spain, etc., because we had no one”
In disagreement with many French clubs on the release of players, Ripoll retains a “scar” from this Olympic tournament, having had the feeling of “going to the pipebreaker”.
“It turned into a charade because almost all the clubs refused. However, everything had been anticipated on time. But out of 150 players requested, we had more than 120 refusals in the end. It was ridiculous, he rages. Ligue 1 refused, then Ligue 2. In L2, we requested 12 and we had 9 refusals. Then we ended up having 16 names 2, when we needed 18 4. On site, the players selected were impeccable, nothing to complain about their mentality, that’s not the problem. But we left with five players under 19, replacement boys in L1 or L2 players. So yes, there was Gignac, Savanier, Thauvin, but then you play Mexico or Japan, who arrive with armies of internationals.
Now without a club, the Breton technician closely follows the work of his successor Thierry Henry with whom he has no contact. In a few months, the latter could experience fewer difficulties in putting together a team for the Olympic deadline. While waiting for the clubs’ decisions, many Tricolores have already applied to participate, Kylian Mbappé in the lead.
