Excerpts from Amy Jacquet's autobiography

Life is just a star —— Autobiography of Aimee Jacques, former head coach of French national team (continued)

1July 998 14 Japan should ring the holiday bell for me. More than a year ago, I announced that I would leave the national team after the World Cup, and nothing could change my original intention. My future has been planned: I will be a coach in the national football coach's office again. I will be responsible for training senior coaches and maybe selecting young players. ...

Life is beautiful, I will go back to the stadium, no pressure, no media and no constraints. I am ecstatic at the thought of passing on my skills to others. In my opinion, this is the best job. I think so beautifully. ...

On the morning of July 15, the national football coach held a meeting in Claire Fontaine. All the coaches of the national team were present, and we made a summary of the first World Cup at the meeting. The so-called summary is to draft a series of observation reports and distribute them to all coaches in China after publication.

However, on that day, Ye announced that he would resign as the director of the national football coach's office and become the head coach of Liverpool! Later, he confirmed that two other national team coaches would also leave: patrice Berg went to England with Gé rard and Jacques Devis returned to Monaco. As for our goalkeeper, Philippe Bergeroux was recruited by Paris Saint-Germain.

The news really hit me hard. First of all, after 48 hours of positive excitement, I suddenly saw some negative emotions in front of me. I feel that with the departure of a friend who led the national football coach for ten years and completed a lot of modernization work, we lost a lot. In particular, I feel that the heavy responsibility will fall on my shoulders again, which is certain, just as there is no doubt that two plus two equals four. The position of technical director is not my specialty! I'm completely unprepared. I still lack some abilities.

Not to mention I need to catch my breath! If I accept claude simon's proposal (he hinted at me a few days ago, but as long as Gérard Oury Ye didn't officially announce his resignation, I couldn't accept this fact in my heart), which means that from June to September in 5438, I will be submerged in documents and meetings again. Among these problems, ...

Every time I raise an objection, they can try to deal with it. Every time I make a request, they quickly agree.

"We will help you, we will arrange ... what you don't want to do, we will help you do ..."

The following is an irrefutable argument:

"You can't refuse: you have just finished a masterpiece, and you are completely reliable. You have no right not to contribute your talent and prestige to the French football cause. "

Since all the friends in the national football coach's office agreed, I had to give in to their well-meaning oppression. They are worried about the signs of chaos that have appeared, and they need to take a reassurance. So they put their hopes on me. They gave me a lot of help before and during the World Cup, so now I can't refuse their request.

With the above story, I can't say that I didn't have any psychological burden when I went to Savoie for my holiday. On the contrary, I feel a lot of pressure. I hope to stay in my cabin for a while, just like this time last year.

In fact, long before the World Cup, many people reminded me:

"Go abroad for a holiday, don't stay in France. If you don't have a good record in the World Cup, people won't let you live a good life, and you will be the object of ridicule. No matter how good the record is, it is unbearable. You will no longer belong to yourself and can't take another step ... "

On the eve of departure, I put all my suggestions behind me. For 30 years, I have visited my friend Milu and other friends in Tony every summer and winter. When I become a world champion, won't I go this year? I stood them up? It's hard to imagine!

I arrived in Tony on a sunny night in July. I deliberately didn't tell others the exact time of my arrival, because I didn't want a formal reception or any reception committee. I was successful in this respect, but there was a surprise waiting for me in front of the wooden house: I found a beautiful flower bed composed of blue, white and red flowers, and a big sign that said "World Champion". I climbed the steps and saw blue, white and red flowers everywhere. What a surprise! Gradually, groups of neighbors came to greet me and congratulate me. The children are running around and the atmosphere is quite harmonious. But in the meantime, it is obvious that a large number of tourists know that I am here ... even if they don't know now, placards and flower beds can point out where I am. So, I took off the placard. In the next few days, in the city, the businessman strictly followed my request and refused to provide my address, but people still wanted to see my house and take pictures of me.

As a result, my wife and I had to pull down the blinds and live in seclusion. In order to calm people's curiosity, the mayor suggested that I organize an aime jacquet activity day and hold a formal reception and signing ceremony at the city government. I agreed to the proposal with half doubt and half uneasiness.

That day, it was a frenzy! The metric ton square was crowded with people, at least 5,000 people ... The mayor spoke, and then gave me a medal issued by the city. I responded one by one, and "I will live" was played on the tweeter. The situation at that time was as chaotic as it is now ... I started signing under the pressure of people. It lasted three hours! Signed for three hours! I can't see the end. Finally, the mayor announced that the person who left the envelope and address would get a signed photo as a souvenir. The municipal government organized and issued a postcard with my portrait on it, with a ton of scenery in the background. They sent about 5000 letters. ...

However, my holiday was ruined! I usually like to go out and visit villages and markets, but now I never go out without being surrounded by people. So I stopped going out and lived in seclusion. Only two or three times, Martin and I managed to escape. In the morning, we went hiking in the sleeping village, and our dog followed us closely. It was during the outing that I realized that I was finished. Usually, I can walk for hours without feeling tired at all. Now, after only a few kilometers, I can't hold on.

This is caused by several reasons: extreme fatigue and lung infection, the former is easy to explain, and the latter may be caused by my decreased resistance. I can't hold on any longer. Extremely empty, extremely boring. I can't read three or four pages at a time, but I can read one book after another greedily during the holidays. In a word, I'm not interested in anything anymore.

If I really had no psychological burden, I wouldn't be so tired. My new position as the national football coach has always haunted me, which makes me unable to relax. I can't find any relief in the memory of the World Cup! Strangely, when I think back to the World Cup, I can't help but think of those negative shots first: the stage when our situation was not good; An extremely tense moment in the dressing room; Vaguely, the music keeps pounding my head, and I feel a splitting headache ... When I think of Croatia, I will think of the goal I scored with Suk at the beginning of the second half. Why not think about Thuram's two goals in a row?

I had a depressing day. I forced myself to calm down and take notes and write a summary. But I can't. I'm actually a little weak and tired. My body shouted "time out". Actually, I'm already running at a high load. Then I slowly recovered. I started taking injections and medicine to treat lung infection. I rediscovered the joy of life. Some old friends came to see me. I first declared to them: "We can talk about anything you want, except football." Sure enough, we said nothing about football. A friend helped me install some shelves in the garage. I'm not a good mender, but this time I also had fun. I soon had a plan to expand the wooden house. My friend Piazon told me that he knew a wooden house similar to mine, which had just been renovated. Why not go and have a look? So we set out to see the house. We arrived at a nearby village and were received by a lady who loves sports. A few years ago, she took part in cycling and achieved good results. Her level is almost the same as that of Jenny Longo, and she even threatened her several times. She showed us around the house very kindly and enthusiastically, and also showed us the extension. Very satisfied. We were about to leave when she said shyly, "You just left? What brilliant achievements you have made in the World Cup, we want to celebrate. " She opened a bottle of Sawadang wine. Inadvertently, a neighbor came in with her child in her arms, and then others came. The butcher came with some special dishes, and the room was soon crowded with people ... "You know, Mr. Yakai," the hostess said to me with a smile, "it's always like this after the game every night. We celebrate together. "

We had a good time, in this August afternoon, in this small village in Savoie, in an obscure place in France! It was at this time that I realized how far-reaching the influence of the national team was. They told me that millions of French people shared our joys and sorrows. I realized that some people I didn't know before communicated with each other. They hit it off and reveled all night on the night of July 12 until the early morning of the next day. Incense, wine and beer flowed all over France to the smallest village. Of course, the TV shows crowds on the Champs Elysé es, large-scale gatherings in Bordeaux, Marseille, Montpellier and other places ... but there should be 40 or 50 people gathering in some humble small villages. Maybe there, the heart beats faster and the joy comes from the heart, although it doesn't look so unrestrained.

I also appreciate another more stable and sincere expression, just like a university professor I met on the high-speed train from Anxi to Paris on July 27th. He obviously recognized me, but he didn't say a word to me. When I got off the bus, he stuffed a small note in my coat pocket with a short but touching sentence, expressing his love, respect and pride in enjoying the "wonderful moment" with the national team.

We bring happiness to others. Not ordinary happiness. This kind of happiness comes from the victory created by a group of United, serious and capable boys. People find that happiness can actually be found in work, which is a positive image of France. People feel this value and see their own shadow in us. Although this is a healthy and natural pleasure, I can't help asking myself whether people's excitement is exaggerated or even abnormal. One morning during Tony's holiday, after two hours' walk, I climbed a mountain with an altitude of 1500 meters. I was enjoying the scenery when a northern brand car stopped in front of me. A couple and a disabled girl got off the bus. They asked me to sign it, and I signed it happily. Suddenly, all three of them began to cry! Seeing my embarrassed expression, they stammered, "Sorry, we can't help ourselves. You have brought us great happiness! " "My first reaction was to say to myself: No, it's been a month, and we shouldn't be so emotional. What if we win the gold cup in the World Cup ... We finished our work, we succeeded, and that's it! But it's much more than that. Thousands of people came to pat me on the shoulder, shake my hand, or thank me with tears. All these feelings of happiness and excitement were felt. It can be seen that it is not a fake, but a natural revelation from the heart. It is so deep and so strong that it urgently needs to be released.