France coach calls for lighter schedule

France coach Raymond Domenech has called on UEFA to reduce the number of qualifying matches for future European Championship campaigns - describing the current system as "cumbersome and tedious".

Domenech was speaking after the qualifying draw for the 2008 finals - in which his side were pitted against Italy, Ukraine, Scotland, Lithuania, Georgia and the Faroe Islands.

"Having to play 12 or 14 matches puts a lot of pressure on the players and demands a lot of effort," Domenech told reporters.

"I would rather see us playing like they do in the Davis Cup where teams are first split into different levels."

The idea of separating teams into different tiers based on their previous results, with stronger teams coming into the competition at a later stage, has been repeatedly opposed by both UEFA and FIFA, who argue that the present format helps smaller teams improve their game.

An increase in the number of European states coupled with a change in the competition's qualifying format means that teams must now play a minimum of 12 matches just to reach the tournament proper.