Laurent Blanc stepped down as France coach on Saturday after a European Championship campaign that ended in the quarterfinals and with his players again being questioned about their behaviour.
Blanc informed the French Football Federation of his decision following lengthy negotiations with FFF president Noel Le Graet on Thursday. The FFF said there would be no further comment before a news conference on Tuesday, when its executive committee meets.
The favourite to replace Blanc is former France captain Didier Deschamps, who is set to leave as Marseille manager after a difficult last season.
Le Graet was favourable to Blanc staying on. However, Blanc was reportedly unhappy he wasn’t offered a contract extension before Euro 2012 had started, with the FFF preferring to wait and see how the team performed. France lost its final group match to last-place Sweden to set up a clash against Spain in the quarterfinals, losing 2-0 to the defending champions in a largely defensive performance.
The Euro 2012 campaign was tainted by tensions among the players following a heated changing room bust-up immediately after the 2-0 loss to Sweden, while midfielder Samir Nasri was also embroiled in an expletive-laced exchange with a French journalist. Those incidents may have influenced Blanc’s decision.
