14 July 2020 FourFourTwo
“I’ve still got the shirts – I don’t keep many,
but I’ve still got those,” Rob Lee smiles to FFT.
“Oh, and the medal.” The former Newcastle
midfielder is trying to jog his memory about
events that took place 25 years ago, but there
is one thing that springs to mind quickly.
“The trophy!” he says. “Was Alan [Shearer]
even smiling when he held it aloft?” Lee is
reminiscing about what must be the lamest
international trinket ever; a clipart-inspired
generic football prize that would have been
more at home presented to the champions
of an under-eights tournament. “I vaguely
remember seeing it on a pencil case my son
had once,” continues Lee, who played in two
of the three matches. “Weirdly, though, it’s
a picture I’d like to have – we actually did
win something...”
And he’s right: Le Tournoi is still the last
glory England’s national team laid claim to –
assuming we’re not getting all misty-eyed
over the 2004 FA Summer Tournament that
featured Japan and Iceland at the City of
Manchester Stadium, that is. (How could you
forget that?) It came at a crucial juncture for
Glenn Hoddle’s Three Lions, wedged between
the agonising high of Euro 96 and a year of
cautious optimism before the 1998 World
Cup, a tournament for which they had yet to
qualify and still faced their hardest fixture to
reach. Ranked 13th in the world, below the
likes of Mexico, Russia and Romania, England
were out to prove they were far more serious
contenders than that. The quietly developing
crop, melding 30-somethings with several
Manchester United-schooled starlets, were
playing for pride too.
For their three opponents that summer, the
circumstances were mixed. In the days when
FIFA’s Confederations Cup was customarily
staged in Saudi Arabia, Le Tournoi acted as
something of a dry run for France’s hosting
of the following year’s World Cup – matches
were played in four cities (Paris, Nantes, Lyon
and Montpellier), with some stadia still under
construction. At Lyon’s Stade de Gerland, for
example, a jazzy pop art mural depicting 32
legends was erected behind one goal while
work took place – inevitably it caused some
controversy, as icons like Franz Beckenbauer
and Brazil’s then-coach Mario Zagallo were
left off. Ticket prices were also a source of
contention, ranging from 250 Francs to an
eye-watering 500 (£28-£56) for England’s
matches, at a time when the cheapest entry
to watch a national game at Wembley cost
£22 (around £35 today).
With Serie A’s season having only finished
two days earlier, Italy boss Cesare Maldini
was furious at the Azzurri’s mere presence –
so much that it was reported they’d even
considered dropping out for a hefty fine.
Brazil were more relaxed – understandably
so, given they’d already qualified for France
98 as defending champions. A strong team
had just been beaten 4-2 by Norway, though,
in a busy calendar year that would ultimately
serve up 24 Selecao showdowns.
In short, England’s adversaries were there
for the taking. “We went straight there after
a really good victory in Poland [in World Cup
qualifying],” says Lee. “I’d say the tournament
was understated, but we were up against
the three best teams in the world and I think
it was quite important to see how we’d get
on against them.”
Having taken over from Terry Venables after
the Euros, Hoddle’s record read: played eight,
won seven, lost one – to their opening Tournoi
foes Italy, who’d squeaked a 1-0 Wembley
victory in World Cup qualifying a few months
earlier. Something good was forming under
the ex-Chelsea manager.
“Glenn was brilliant – coaching-wise he was
the best I ever had,” says Lee. “Tactically, he
was so good. He introduced a back three and
played three in midfield instead of a 4-4-2.
He was probably one of the first to do that –
we only played 4-4-2 at Newcastle. He used
David Beckham as a wing-back and gave usTop to bottom
Roberto Carlos
delivered the
star moment
of Le Tournoi;
Scholes shone;
“OK, I’m sorry
I said Lilian is
a girl’s name”76 July 2022 FourFourTwo
some more options in midfield – I’d started
with Paul Ince and Gazza against Poland.
Glenn wasn’t as good a man-manager as he
was a coach, but I loved him.”
Hoddle, however, was forced into a slight
pre-tournament rethink. He’d planned to use
Jamie Redknapp as a Matthias Sammer-style
sweeper until injury struck, so turned to Aston
Villa’s 26-year-old Gareth Southgate instead.
After Roberto Carlos’ thunderbastard for
the ages was cancelled out by Marc Keller’s
second-half leveller for France in the opening
game, England lined up against the Italians
in Nantes. Lee, almost fully fit after breaking
a toe, missed out and in stepped a 22-year-
old Paul Scholes for his first Three Lions start.
“I remember watching him from the bench
thinking, ‘Oh my god, I won’t have very long
left after this’,” winces Lee.
With Shearer rested and Robbie Fowler out
of the squad through injury, a 33-year-old
Ian Wright got the nod upfront. The Arsenal
marksman had been left out in the cold at
international level from October 1994 untilL E
TOURnOI