"France has too many good players"

THE decision by French manager Aime Jacquet to do without Eric Cantona for next month's Euro 96 may have caused something of an uproar in England but it was widely expected in his home country.

The reactions from the 22 players called up by Jacquet were unanimous - picking Cantona would have caused more problems than it would have solved.

Bordeaux striker Christophe Dugarry said the decision proved Jacquet was a man of principles. "Cantona's absence can be accounted for by Jacquet's wish to stick to his ideas. It must have been a hard decision to make. But I can see his point," he said.

Indeed, Cantona's absence seemed to give French Football Federation president Claude Simonet reasons to rejoice. For him, Jacquet's decision was made more difficult by the high number of first class players in the country.

"For the first time, France has too many good players. To call up Cantona at the expense of players who had helped France qualify would have been unfair," he said.

. Ajax will be without defender Frank De Boer for the European Cup final against Juventus and striker Patrick Kluivert will start on the bench, the Dutch team's coach Louis Van Gaal said last night.

Van Gaal, speaking on arrival at Rome's Ciampino airport for tomorrow's final, said: "Frank De Boer won't play, and Kluivert is only at 50 per cent of his form. He will be on the substitutes' bench, but might come on in the second half."

. France's Footballer of the Year Zinedine Zidane (23) confirmed last night he will be leaving Bordeaux next season for Juventus.