Mad Brit Diary

French invasion proves to be boon to England's Premier League.

(Friday, February 7, 2003) -- It's 1066 all over again for the English.

For those Americans weak on history, France -- Normandy that is -- invaded Britain in 1066, killing King Harold at Hastings with an arrow to the eye. Things haven't been the same since. Except the food remained pretty Saxon, bland and boring, but I love it.

Now, instead of Norman troops with fancy bows and arrows butchering the unwashed English, the French are dominating the soccer fields of England's top clubs with nifty play and wonderful goals. The Premier League is full of top French stars and these Gaelic wonders are producing some of the best soccer in the world.

When Arsenal faced Fulham recently, there were eight French players on the field and two coaching from the sidelines. Vive La France. Now the Mad Brit, raised on fish n' chips and soggy peas, has nothing against the French -- we won't talk about the war on Iraq here -- in fact, the Mad Brit thinks Thierry Henry is the best player in the world. The 6-foot-2 striker, who seems to easily weave his way though defenses, is just superb. The Arsenal striker told the English media that playing in the Premier League had given him and other French English-based players a new dimension to their game.

"Hats off to English football, which is so intense and competitive." he said. "In England, they only want to win. There are no tactics, you just play."

Well, let's not forget Michael Owen, Joe and Ashley Cole, but he does have a point. The current crop of French players have excellent technique, with brilliant touches. When France crushed Slovenia 5-0 last year in a Euro 2004 qualifier, five in the starting lineup played in the Premier League.

Bring on the French, I say. These Frenchmen have helped transform the Premier League into the best show in town and the English youngsters are learning at the feet of the masters. French coaches Arsene Wenger (Arsenal), Gerard Houllier (Liverpool) and Jean Tigana (Fulham), along with players such as Arsenal stars Patrick Vieira, Sylvain Wiltord and Robert Pires, and others like Laurent Blanc (Manchester United) and Nicolas Anelka (Manchester City), have made the league a smorgasbord of delicious talent.

Let's not forget the man who first led the French exodus to England -- the brilliant Eric Cantona who won titles with Leeds and Manchester United and was later followed to England by the dribbler David Ginola who worked wonders at Tottenham. There are so many French-speaking players in the Premier League these days, if many of the new African stars were included, one would hear French spoken on the field as much as English.

There' are World Cup stars Marcel Desailly and Emmanuel Petit at Chelsea; Youri Djorkaeff at Bolton; Fabrice Fernnandes at Southampton; Fabien Barthez and Mikael Silvestre at Manchester United, and Steve Marlet at Fulham. I'm sure I'm missing some and more Frenchmen are arriving all the time. Then why, you might ask, did France do so badly at the World Cup? France came away from Asia with the sad distinction of being the first defending world champion to be eliminated in the first round and that didn't even score a goal! Some thought it was the decline of the Les Blues, but don't bet on it. In Asia, the French team suffered injuries and many players were tired from the long domestic league and Champions League play.

Also missing was the brilliant Pires. Zinedine Zidane was almost limping when he arrived in Japan. Still, not scoring a single goal did stink a bit. But when it comes to Euro 2004 in Portugal, expect coach Jacques Santini's tiltle-holders to do very well.

Mad Brit Roundup -- American goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann saved a penalty kick in Reading's 5-2 win at Burnley last week. Meanwhile, United States winger Eddie Lewis, who keeps collecting accolades, scored a goal in Preston North End's 3-0 downing of Gillingham.

A panel at the Premier League offices in London recently named the best 10 saves in the history of the league which included American goalie Kasey Keller and former Howard keeper, Shaka Hislop. Keller was nominated for his save in a Leicester City jersey against Everton on January 9, 1999, while Hislop was accorded the honor for a stop for West Ham United against Tottenham Hotspur on May 14, 1999.

This is UEFA's "Team of the Year," selected by votes to the European governing body's web site though January 31: Goalkeeper - Rustu (Turkey\Fernerbahce); Defenders - Carlos Puyol (Spain\Barcelona), Alessandro Nesta (Italy\A.C. Milan), Cristian Chivu (Romanian\Ajax), Roberto Carlos (Brazil\Real Madrid); Midfielders - Clarence Seedorf (Netherlands\A.C. Milan), Michael Ballack (Germany\Bayern Munich), Zinedine Zidane (France\Real Madrid), Damien Duff (Ireland\Blackburn); Forwards - Thierry Henry (France\Arsenal), Ronaldo (Brazil\Real Madrid); Coach - Senol Gunes (Turkey).

Did you hear this? Former England star Paul Gascoigne, who had tryout with D.C. United last year, is now the player-coach of Chinese B-league team Gansu Tianma in Lanzhou, a Muslim industrial city on the edge of the northwest desert. It's hard to believe that Diego Maradona's sidekick at the 1990 World Cup is still pulling a fat paycheck.

But then there was Claudio Cannigia, 36, scoring a goal for Glasgow Rangers against Hibernian recently. Cannigia joined Rangers for $1.3 million in 2001. The veteran Argentinean striker has played sparingly this season and his contract is up in July. He is hoping for a one-year extension. If he doesn't get that, who knows? He could he be on his way to MLS.

Caniggia made Argentina's World Cup roster but didn't see action in Asia.

Best name in American soccer -- University of Washington goalkeeper Hope Solo who was drafted by the Women United Soccer Association's Philadelphia Charge.

MLS Roundup - D.C. United will take on Chicago, Columbus and Kansas City during their preseason training stint March 3-13at the Hilton Sunrise Soccer Complex in Sunrise, Fla.

The MLS champion Los Angeles Galaxy will face CD Motagua of Honduras next month in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, while the MLS runnerup New England Revolution will be making its first international appearance against LD Alajuelense, the three-time defending champion in Costa Rica

American midfielder Chris Armas, who missed the World Cup after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in a friendly against Uruguay at RFK Stadium last May, is back on the practice field with his club, the Chicago Fire.

Heard a rumor, have a gripe or a tip? E-mail the Mad Brit at madbrit@soccertimes.com..