Blanc's faith in the French way

While Laurent Blanc cannot help but admire the stylish football and success being achieved by the Spanish national team, his enduring faith in France's development of young players means he is convinced his country will soon return to the winners' circle.

During a fruitful career, Blanc played for some of Europe's biggest clubs and under the tutelage of such luminaries as Sir Alex Ferguson and Marcello Lippi. Now France coach, he is better placed than most to assess where the power currently lies in national-team football, and it is no surprise his attention has been drawn by the FIFA World Cup winners.

"I like the football being played in Spain," he told UEFA.com. "They have a great advantage as the backbone of their team comes from two top clubs, Real Madrid and Barcelona. They have players who know each other very well, who share a common philosophy. It saves some time, as the real problem for a national coach is not having enough time to work with players. If you save time, you will win."

'Le Président' gained first-hand experience of the Spanish approach, spending the 1996/97 season at FC Barcelona. Although his year in Catalonia was tarnished by injury, he still had the chance to inspect the club's famed academy, La Masia, where then teenagers Xavi Hernández and Andrés Iniesta were learning the ropes.

"I like Spain because they impose their style on other teams," Blanc added. "I am one of those who thinks it a good thing when you have possession. Some say the contrary, because when you have the ball you can lose it and be countered – it depends on the philosophy. I like my team to have the ball and ask questions of the opposition.

"To achieve that you need both physical and technical skills and to have players who are able to apply your tactics. That is the role of the coach, to make the philosophy understandable; to make the players understand that whatever the game, whoever the opposition, you can rely on your philosophy of play."

As Blanc points out, despite their recent achievements Spain were no overnight sensation. "Spain had to wait a long time before getting results at international level," continued the 44-year-old, who did not lose in five meetings with La Roja as a player.

"We were surprised Spain hadn't achieved much before. What their last two coaches have done is to create a real togetherness in the national team. The players who have had success have been happy to wear the Spanish jersey. We need to rediscover that spirit in the French team."

After taking the reins following a disappointing World Cup, Blanc immediately championed the importance of unity and pride in the badge, even handing his players the lyrics of La Marseillaise so they could sing the national anthem before kick-off. Although his respect for Spain's system is great, he insists player development à la française still ranks among the best in Europe.

"Many nations will tell you they've taken France's football education as their model," said Blanc, whose side top UEFA EURO 2012 qualifying Group D despite an opening defeat by Belarus. "It's worked very well and continues to do so. The senior national team does not really reflect the health of French football, because we've had excellent results at youth level and with the women's team. It is at the forefront and it's important the good results of the youth teams are transferred into success in a few years at senior level."

France's triumph at the UEFA European Under-19 Championship in July was a timely reminder of the emerging talent. "It's fabulous – those kids are European champions at 19," said Blanc, who attended the Caen final – a 2-1 win against Spain. "Now I would advise them to be astute in their career choices, especially choosing their clubs."

Blanc says the most promising players should "move to a big club abroad after first establishing themselves in France and with the national team". He is helping that process by relying mainly on Ligue 1 players: 15 of the 22 called up to face England in Wednesday's friendly at Wembley are home-based.

Many of them are also young. Yann M'Vila and Mamadou Sakho, both 20, have been part of the setup since Blanc took over, and the coach believes France's future growth lies in this new wave of players. "We have good examples before us, teams that achieved results with young and talented players," he said.

"I am thinking about Spain and Germany. M'Vila and Sakho are two youngsters who are starters at good French clubs and that is important. Mamadou, Yann, and Moussa Sissoko are among the interesting players who have the potential to be part of the national team for a long time."