France coach Roger Lemerre will not resign despite the defending champions World Cup humiliation, team manager Henri Emile confirmed yesterday. "One thing is for sure, he is not going to resign," he told the French radio station RTL on the eve of a French Soccer Federation (FFF) council.

"Roger is not feeling guilty enough to quit. He is waiting for the decision of the French Federation, either they confirm him in office or they dismiss him," he added.

Facing Lemerre's refusal to resign immediately after the defending champions first-round exit, the French federation said that their coaching dilemma would be solved at a council meeting today and tomorrow in Lyon.

But FFF president Claude Simonet has since been quoted as saying that a decision could be postponed until a later meeting on July 26.

Simonet also told soccer magazine France Football on Tuesday that he was in favour of former Paris St Germain manager Jean-Francois Domergue, who last season took Le Havre back to the first division.

Among the other pretenders are Jacques Santini, who resigned as Olympique Lyon manager after taking them to their first French title last season, and former international midfielder Alain Giresse who currently coaches Morocco's FAR Rabat.

Frenchman Philippe Troussier, who guided co-hosts Japan to the last 16 of the World Cup, has also been touted.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.