France Agonizes Over Big Moment

Forty years, three World Cup semifinals and not a thing to show for it.

Now, another World Cup semifinal, an opponent whose reach already might have exceeded its grasp, and isn’t this a great time for France’s offense to have flown south for the summer?

Lamenting that fact the other day, Aime Jacquet was either doing a bad job of hiding his frustration or a cunning job of trying to motivate his suddenly fallible forwards.

They choke under pressure, is what the French coach essentially said.

“Tactics has nothing to do with it,” Jacquet argued. “A lack of serenity, coolness and personality is the problem.”

Whether that sort of remark will be enough to sting the French front line into more production will be seen tonight at Stade de France, where upstart Croatia awaits.

Certainly, something has to give.

Since scoring nine goals in three first-round games, the French have scored only once in their last two.

They endured 114 scoreless minutes against Paraguay before a “golden goal”--one in sudden-death overtime--by Laurent Blanc ended their agony. And Blanc is a defender.

They endured 120 scoreless minutes against Italy before luckless Luigi Di Biagio crashed his penalty kick against the crossbar, eliminating the Italians and causing one French newspaper to splash a large headline across the page: “Grazie, Di Biagio!”

The fans might have been giving thanks, but not the players.

“I know the problem, and there is no explanation,” captain Didier Deschamps said. “Our lack of efficiency in front of goal is our main weakness. That didn’t show in our first three matches, but it has been obvious since.”

Jacquet claimed it was a matter of confidence and patience.

“If we keep creating opportunities, we will finally end up by scoring some,” he said, sounding distressingly like former U.S. coach Steve Sampson.

The problem needs to be solved by tonight or the French will be adding yet another page to an already bleak World Cup scrapbook.

In 1958, blessed with Just Fontaine, a goal-scorer of extraordinary talent, France reached the semifinals in Stockholm, Sweden, only to run slap-bang into Brazil, powered by the 17-year-old Pele.

Exit France, 5-2, with Pele netting a hat trick.

In 1982, blessed with the unique talents of Michel Platini, Alain Giresse and Jean Tigana, France reached the semifinals in Seville, Spain, only to run slap-bang into West Germany, or rather, German goalkeeper Harald Schumacher.

Schumacher’s brutal foul that felled Patrick Battiston helped turn France’s 3-1 overtime lead into a 3-3 tie.

Exit France, 5-4, on penalty kicks.

In 1986, blessed with the same trio of stars--Platini, Giresse and Tigana--France reached the semifinal in Guadalajara, Mexico, only to run slap-bang into West Germany again.

Exit France, 2-0.

And now the French are back, staring at the next-to-last hurdle in what has been a 68-year quest to win the World Cup. And again they are blessed with a standout player, midfielder Zinedine Zidane.

But the French forwards--Youri Djorkaeff, Stephane Guivarc’h, Thierry Henry and David Trezeguet--are nowhere to be found.

“I have no doubts I will score against Croatia,” Djorkaeff said.

Maybe, but fans are putting more faith in Zidane.

“I haven’t scored yet, so I hope it will come in the semifinals,” he said.

But France doesn’t really care where the goals come from, as long as they come.

“We had a mission and that was to win seven matches,” Blanc said. “We need two more victories to fulfill our dream.”

And to finally erase the tear stains that followed the failures of that great French team of the ‘80s, a team that won the European Championship in 1984 but couldn’t quite reach the ultimate prize.

“When you mention [that] generation to people, they immediately name three players--Platini, Giresse and Tigana,” defender Marcel Desailly said.

“We want that to happen to us as well. We want to stay in history. We want people to remember our names.”