Herve Renard named France girls’s coach as World Cup looms

Herve Renard has been named France girls’s coach till 2024 and can lead the staff at this yr’s World Cup, the French federation (FFF) mentioned on Thursday.

The 54-year-old Frenchman resigned as coach of the Saudi Arabia males’s staff this week after main them to final yr’s World Cup in Qatar the place they pulled off a shock group-stage win over eventual champions Argentina.

Renard will unveil his squad for France’s subsequent two friendlies throughout his presentation on Friday. They face Colombia on April 7 and present Olympic champions Canada on April 11.

There’s a brand new chief on the helm for @equipedefranceF 🇫🇷 👔 #FIFAWWC pic.twitter.com/eKncFG5Z26

— FIFA Women’s World Cup (@FIFAWWC) March 30, 2023

The FFF sacked Corinne Diacre this month after captain Wendie Renard mentioned she wouldn’t play on the World Cup if the coach remained in cost.

Ranked fifth on this planet, France will likely be trying to win a primary World Cup at this yr’s showpiece event from July 20-Aug. 20 in New Zealand and Australia.

Renard mentioned after a 2-1 pleasant loss to Bolivia in Jeddah final week that he felt he had taken Saudi Arabia so far as he might.

The flamboyant Renard led Zambia to a shock win within the African Nations Cup ultimate in opposition to Ivory Coast in 2012.

Three years later, he claimed his second continental crown by guiding Ivory Coast to the title by beating Ghana within the ultimate to develop into the primary coach to raise the trophy with two totally different groups.

Diacre’s place had develop into untenable after Wendie Renard mentioned that she wouldn’t play at this yr’s World Cup to protect her psychological well being.

Fellow internationals Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Kadidiatou Diani adopted swimsuit quickly, all saying they had been taking a step again from the nationwide staff.

Wendie Renard, extensively thought of among the finest defenders in girls’s soccer, performed for France in opposition to Norway, Denmark and Uruguay final month.

She was stripped of the captaincy by Diacre following France’s quarter-final exit at Euro 2017, earlier than regaining the armband in 2021.

Diacre was additionally criticised finally yr’s European Championship in England for leaving senior gamers Amandine Henry and Eugenie Le Sommer, their all-time main scorer, out of her squad.