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Analyst: 'We got what we deserved'

French football supporters: "Despondent and depressed"

PARIS, France (CNN) -- Christian Malar, Senior Analyst with France Free Television, spoke to CNN about the reasons for the French team's poor performance at the World Cup, and what it means for the country.

The French are very despondent and depressed this morning, and at the same time very disappointed and realistic about what happened.

Everyone acknowledged that having an attack which hasn't scored a single goal in three games, with no inspiration, no realism, no appropriate tactics, means we got what we deserved.

Four years ago when we won the World Cup in this country, it was a kind of cement for all social categories and people -- French, white, African, Muslim non-Muslim -- it was a big communion.

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Today, when the nation is looking for a new identity with new political blood, it seems that this defeat might have an effect on the state of mind of the French people, and an impact on a social level.

But it's time that the French understand that we cannot win with such a team, and it is always good to learn from the lessons that have been drawn by the French football team and its coach.

Football in France is very popular ... when you get to the suburbs of Paris or big cities, you see all these young guys belonging to different social categories very keen on football and very expert about football.

I wouldn't say football was a religion like it has been in Brazil, for instance, but it was becoming such a thing.

And today, with the symbol of defeat and through the national star of French football Zidane and this French team which has lost, I'm sure it will have an impact and we have to draw from it at all levels.

I would like to say that our press here has been too self confident probably in the same way as the French team.

We have to sweep in front of our door. The French team has lacked energy, dynamism, it's a team which is getting old, too self confident, relying too much on its one star, Zidane.

We have to build up a new footballistic future.

They won't receive the kind of homecoming the team got four years ago when the whole nation, more than a million people, were waiting for them and was cherishing this great team. Today I imagine we won't have any people.

But we know that from one year to another things change -- you have a new football, new team with new energy. The French were not there.

Let me repeat again what I say: We got what we deserved.