Pichon retires with 'heavy heart'

Having missed out on the FIFA Women's World Cup finals, Marinette Pichon's retirement from international football leaves France at a crossroads.

Bitter note
Before Saturday's decisive Group 5 game against England, France's all-time top scorer had decided only one thing - that this season would be her last. The 31-year-old would have preferred to have left on a less bitter note than the 1-1 draw which denied Elisabeth Loisel's side a place in China. Ludivine Diguelman's goal for France two minutes from time gave the brilliant Pichon a last chance to snatch glory for France on her 112th appearance and bring her personal tally to 82 for her country - exactly double that of France's most prolific male goalscorer, Michel Platini. As it was, that chance would not come and the draw spelled the end of her career.

'Heavy heart'
"It was my last game with France," she said after the final whistle. "I'm very disappointed by it. It was one of our best campaigns in the qualifiers. With a heavy heart I will take some time to rest and start something else." Pichon has pledged to complete the domestic season with French champions Juvisy FCF and then hang up her boots for good. "I'll keep all the emotional memories I have of the France team but now it's too hard to prepare to play at the top level. It takes a lot of sacrifice and I have had enough of making sacrifices," added the forward, her country's leading domestic scorer in 2000/01, 2001/02, 2004/05 and 2005/06.

Amateur schedule
Pichon acknowledged that the state of women's football in France had influenced her decision to quit. "Nations like the United States, Norway and Germany will always be above us because they're semi-professional," she said. "In France, we have to get up at 7am, work for eight or nine hours and train in the evenings. Try it for ten months and you'll see how good your form is at the end." The same arguments were used by defender Corinne Diacre after she retired from international football having earned a record 121 caps, and while France have risen to sixth place in the world rankings - with 56,000 female players now registered - Pichon believes it will take a more professional atmosphere for France to truly join the world élite.

United States spell
Having played professional football for Philadelphia Charge in the United States in 2002/03, Pichon proved her worth by finishing as the leading scorer in the WUSA before it went bankrupt. A spell at New Jersey Wildcats followed before the Bar-sur-Aube-born player returned to France, where she had started her career with AS Saint-Memie. Pichon's decision to quit raises question marks over the nine-year tenue of coach Loisel. "I need a little bit of time to decide whether the French team's destiny and my destiny will be entwined in the future," she said. The 111-times capped midfielder Sandrine Soubeyrand could also retire.