France fear the FA are missing centre point

Burton can be new Clairefontaine

While everyone knew that Adam Crozier's resignation as chief executive of the Football Association would inevitably lead to a review of many of his initiatives, nobody could have predicted that one of the most important projects of his tenure would be targeted quite so swiftly by the new, Premiership-orientated executive board. But the decision to halt the construction of the National Football Centre in Burton-on-Trent has even caused ripples on the other side of the Channel.

The French are mortified. André Merelle is one of the key men at Clairefontaine, the centre which is being used as a model for the proposed English site. In the last five years, he has been the FA's main contact in France, working closely with the former technical director, Howard Wilkinson, until the latter's move to take over as Sunderland manager last month.

So far as Merelle is concerned, the investment is crucial to England's development. "I don't know if you can say that without us [Clairefontaine] France would never have won the World Cup," he says, "but what is true is that we helped build that winning team. England have a great opportunity to do the same and they would be very foolish to give that up now."

The Clairefontaine complex is used for every national team from 13 upwards, serving as both a home from home for the senior players and a school for the aspiring juniors. There are currently 65 full-time boarders at the centre, the vast majority of whom will one day play for their country.

Thierry Henry is the most high-profile success story, but he is not the only international to come off the production line. Chelsea's William Gallas is the current French centre-back alongside Marcel Desailly, while Nicolas Anelka, but for a self-imposed exile, would be a member of Les Bleus.

Having been part of the project since its inception in 1988, Merelle has seen at first hand what can be achieved by giving young players the right sort of education. "Those guys came to us as 13-year-old kids," Merelle explains. "By the time they left three years later, they were ready to be professional footballers."

Not that a national centre serves just the players. "There is this common misconception that we are only here to teach footballers how to improve," says Merelle, who has been with France's National Football Institute for 21 years, "but our mandate is much wider than that. We coach coaches [something which the English FA have started doing only in the last two years], and advise referees.

"We also help develop women's football, as well as the amateur game. Our role is all-encompassing and pivotal to the well-being of football in France. The national team is of utmost importance, of course it is, but the simple truth is that you cannot be good at the top if you are rubbish below."

No wonder, then, Wilkinson is furious with the FA's cryptic decision to "take some more time to ensure that we are in a position to commit fully to the National Football Centre at this time".

The Sunderland manager has his critics, but no one can argue with the fact that he invested time and energy to set the plan in motion. Having visited Clairefontaine a number of times with his temporary replacement, Les Reed, he is aware of its importance. "I can't believe they are going to mothball the project," he said. "There's been a gross error of judgement somewhere. Everybody thinks it's about the international team. It's not. It's about the development of football at all levels in this country, from the grass roots right through to the Premier League, right through to the international teams."

Crozier's appointments at the FA, most notably the marketing director Paul Barber, are supporters of the national centre, too. There is, however, little they can do now that the Premier League have gained the balance of power. "I think things look worse than they are," Barber said, trying to explain the current review in business, rather than political, terms. "The NFC is the largest single project aside from Wembley, so it is only normal that the board should be looking at the finances.

"We all want the centre to go ahead but, in these difficult times for football, I think it would be unwise to commit a lot of money to one project while ignoring all others."

Barber is obviously keen to protect the many grass roots initiatives launched by the FA in recent years. But when more than £700m is being spent on the redevelopment of Wembley, it is difficult to understand why £50m cannot be set aside for a national centre of excellence.

Last week, while the England squad and their partners were lodged at a luxury health farm, and the training sessions were carried out at a non-League ground, the French team were preparing for their 3-0 friendly victory over Yugoslavia in the familiar surroundings of Clairefontaine.

"I guess the best way of looking at it," Merelle says, "is that French football has a home. We have a base which the players not only know but can call their own. And let's face it, it's important for any top footballing nation to have a home and not rely on hotels. Apart from anything else, it is a question of pride."