Blanc: I am not the bogeyman

France were eliminated from the tournament in South Africa in the first round following a campaign marred by a players' boycott of a training session in support of striker Nicolas Anelka, who was sent home for insulting coach Raymond Domenech.

"I followed the events with great sadness. I was disappointed by the results and I was particularly shocked by some behaviour," Blanc, a member of France's World Cup-winning squad in 1998, told a news conference on Tuesday.

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