France skipper Patrice Evra has slammed reports of a rift in the camp as "bull" amid rumours teammate William Gallas is furious he was overlooked for the captaincy
Cape Town: France skipper Patrice Evra has slammed reports of a rift in the camp as "bull" amid rumours teammate William Gallas is furious he was overlooked for the captaincy. William Gallas and (right) Patrice Evra. Pic/AFP
Les Bleus failed to win their opening World Cup game for the third successive tournament on Friday as they could only draw 0-0 with Uruguay at Cape Town's Green Point Stadium.
While the fixture could be seen as the toughest they will face in Group A, with matches against Mexico and hosts South Africa to come, the performance did little to appease the doubters who predicted Raymond Domenech's side would fail to perform in the finals.
Evra has been handed the captain's armband for the tournament after Thierry Henry's move to the substitutes' bench. That decision by Domenech sparked talk of disunity in the camp, with the more experienced Gallas apparently unhappy at being overlooked and consequently deciding to boycott the media in protest.
Despite failing to get off to a winning start, though, Manchester United left-back Evra remains defiant. Asked about rumours of discontent, the skipper told Press Association Sport: "That's bull. That's not true.
"The mood is good. William is a professional and he wants to play at the World Cup. "Everything is okay. I guarantee the atmosphere is very good. It's not a problem."
The French meet Mexico in their second match hopeful that the Central Americans will prove less conservative in their approach than Oscar Tabarez's Uruguay.
"Against Mexico we need to win now," said Evra. "And then we'll see after that against South Africa." At this stage, the 29-year-old is just happy to be at the tournament and, more importantly, wearing the armband. "To captain the team at the World Cup is an honour, I'm very proud," he said.
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