Tigana silent on French job rumours

Jean Tigana, the favoured candidate to succeed Jacques Santini as France coach after Euro 2004, refused to answer questions on the subject as he arrived in Portugal on Wednesday.

Tigana, formerly in charge of Monaco and Fulham, has already been named in the French media as the next coach of Les Bleus, with Santini moving to London to take charge of Tottenham.

But no comment will be made on the subject by the French Football Federation (FFF) until the European champions’ campaign is over.

Tigana remained tight-lipped when the question of Santini’s successor arose but was more talkative when asked what he thought of Zinedine Zidane’s heroics against England.

Tigana said: “He (Zidane) is the best player in the world at the moment.”

Tigana was a member of the France team which became European Champions in 1984 in a legendary midfield alongside Michel Platini, Luis Fernandez and Alain Giresse, known in France as "le carre magique" (magic diamond).