France 2-0 Romania, 9/10/10Forget the Nick Cousins Men Jersey sympathy directed at Roy Hodgson. If you thought the ex-Fulham gaffer had it tough then spare a thought for Laurent Blanc, who walked into the France job without a hope it would seem. But now, if all goes well on Tuesday night against Luxembourg, youwould not be able towipe the smile off of Blancs face even with the most brutal machine afterlast nights 2-0 victoryfollowing the summers ludicrous showing. Acatastrophic series of outrageous events lit up a drab World Cup in South Africa, particularly from an English point of view as players well and truly took throwing their toys out of the pram to a new level under Blancs predece sor Raymond Domenech.The starting XI from last night featured just 3 of the players who began the match in the2-1 lo s to South Africaat the World Cup in June, a testament to what Blanc has had to deal with. He will hope to brush the well-documented problems under the Stade de France pitch and really kick on in his brief but eventful tenure so far. But just to recap for the enjoyment of English readers, Anelka got sulky, had a tantrum, had to pack his bags home. Evra had a fight with Robert Duverne, theteam trainer, stropped off and launched his ID badge like a 5 year old who had lost a game of FIFA, then the next day, Managing Director of the French team, Jean-Louis Valentin resigned from his position due to being French. Well, being sickened and disgusted by the actions of the team was the official reason but you cannot comprehend how difficult it must have been spectating from a fans point of view.Duverne & Evra Following that, the grumpyfootballers then made Domenech read out a statement criticising the French Football Federation(FFF) for sending Anelka home,to the media. Now theteam and the governing bodywere at war as the FFF responded in embarra sment rather than anger, apologising to the world for the antics displayed by these well I was about to say men but I had to rethink that egotistical bunch (there we go).France were eliminated after losing 2-1 to South Africa in the group stages, the whole squad subsequently banned by Blanc himselfwith further punishments for the main culprits. Rather like an angry father than coach, Blanc wants a fresh, Darcy Kuemper Jersey new side to propell this new era. But it hasnt started well.Dreams of a new beginning for Les Bleus were thrown away as Norway and Belarus defeated the new look French side. The team dropped to 26th in the FIFA World Rankings and a novel crop of talented youngsters was in desperate need. Mediocrity was fast approaching as Blanc remained calm, seemingly under control of it all. Or maybe the madne s had driven him to insanity.Belarus celebrate a famous winBosnia-Herzegovina were the next opponents on the road to Poland/Ukraine in 2012, mere days after that humiliation to Belarus. A stern test as Bosnia were surprisingly astute in qualifying for the World Cup, reaching the play-offs like France themselves, but ended up losing to Portugal. With Edin Dzeko and Miralem Pjanic in their ranks, Bosnia were the real dark horses in Group D. However, France swept them away, comfortably winning 2-0 in Sarajevo with goals from Benzema and Malouda late on.Was the page turning? Was Blanc, who had proven himself to be an incisive leader at Bordeaux, about to continue his excellent work with a group of youngsters, new to the limelight? Too soon to call, one win cannot dispel the history that easily (as England have now seen themselves) especially as the two results were days apart. But if any man can turn the wheel, it must be Blanc.Young, tactical and succe sful Laurent BlancFor who deserves to be moresucce sfulthat Laurent Blanc himself? Truly Antti Raanta Kids Jersey a great as a player making over 600 appearances and 97 for his country, he played with style and composure, unlikely characteristics for a centre back to po se s. However, he was the victimofone ofthe greatest injustices in recent World Cup history. Profoundly captaining France on home soil at the 98 tournament, he wandered up into Croatias penalty area for a cro s. Slaven Bilic joined him as the two were about to do battle for the ball. Blanc then appeared to shrug Bilic off, no problem. But the Croat dived for the floor as though he had been thumped by a Hayemaker. Blanc was red carded, the only one of his career and had to watch as his teammates won their only World Cup trophy, on home soil, without being involved inthe 3-0 walloping of Brazil.Blanc has since been involved in management. He spent 3 years at Bordeaux, his first job since retirement, and seems to know what hes doing. Les Girondins unhinged perennial winners Olympic Lyonnais for the first time in 8 years, no mean feat, to win Ligue 1 for the 6th time in their history. Add to that 3 more trophies and Blanc knew the magic formula for management. It made sense that when Domenech announced he would be stepping down as France bo sthe FFF ensured Blanc was the main man.But onto Romania. Blancdeclared post match that the side Nick Schmaltz Men Jersey would not take Romania lightly, insisting that the win against Bosnia proved nothing. Still trying to leave the troubled past behind, whenever Blanc attends a news conference he must dread the inevitable questions laid forwards to him. Dispelling any nerves, the Frenchman made it clear that there were none ahead of this match, even though France had not won at the Stade de France in overa year. There is a new feeling in this camp, not because of the players but because of the new systems brought in by Blanc. A stricter attitude has arrived and psychologists regularly visit the team to give Blanc every po sible chance of succe s.Romania came into the match with something to prove too. Draws with Belarus and Albania indicated a desperateneed to kick on and set their campaign alight, as they must fancy a group where the real threats come from a new Bosnia side and an unpredictable French team. But they themselves can be unpredictable too. We saw a real glimpse of the teams potential at Euro 2008, where they earned themselves a fair amount of credit with good performances in a terribly difficult group which even featured France. However, theywent off the boil Christian Fischer Kids Jersey afterwards, failing to qualify for the World Cup. But one aspect Romania seem to hold is the fact that their unpredictable ways can unhinge teams of higher stature, displaying awesome performances when you least expect them.But not tonight. France produced a real late show, courtesy of clever substitutions and goals from Loic Remy and Yoann Gourcuff, sending them top of the group. Romanias cautious approach looked to have dispelled any idea of a result but their plan could only hold for so long.France a team united and playing well (yes its true!)It seemed to be the same old story for the French