France coach Raymond Domenech ridiculed Jose Mourinho's criticism of his decision to pick veteran midfielder Claude Makelele for the upcoming Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.

Chelsea manager Mourinho accused Domenech of treating Makelele like a "slave", claiming the France boss had ignored the player's purported retirement from international football following the World Cup.

But Domenech laughed off Mourinho's outburst yesterday ahead of Les Bleus' upcoming qualifying matches against Georgia and Italy, which came as Makelele said he was happy to carry on playing for France.

"He (Makelele) is the slave, and I am the slave-driver, I crack the whip," Domenech joked.

Adopting a more serious tone, Domenech indicated that French authorities would not hesitate to act if Makelele was prevented from reporting for international duty.

"He is a footballer, he is available for selection and if he doesn't come we can take appropriate action," Domenech said.

Under the impression that Makelele had quit the international scene on July 10 after playing for France in the World Cup final, Mourinho on Sunday accused Domenech of treating the player like a "slave".

"Pavel Nedved, Paul Scholes, Luis Figo have all retired from international football. With the Czechs, England and Portugal.

"It is unbelievable. Makelele is not a footballer, he is a slave."

Makelele distanced himself from Mourinho's remarks however, and was quoted as saying on Tuesday that he was happy to continue his international career.

"It's a duty to wear the colours of your country. My name is on the squad list and I have to go there," said the Kinshasa-born midfielder who has won 50 caps for the French international team.

"Playing for France means a lot to me. I'm a professional. I'm doing my job and even if my club don't agree with it, I'm going to accept this call-up.

"I can understand Mourinho's disappointment. It was agreed I was to stop playing for France after the World Cup. But I've talked to Domenech and he believes I can still be useful to the team.

"It's a rather tricky situation. I'll have to play more games and I'll end up more tired," Makelele added.

Without commenting on the specifics of the Makelele case, FIFA stressed on Monday that any player is allowed to retire from international football.

But a decision to hang up one's international boots must be transmitted to the federation before a squad or team announcement.

"The general situation is that any player is free to decide that he is not playing for his national team," said Andreas Herren, a spokesman for world football's governing body.

"There is no FIFA rule to prevent any player stopping his international career, that's up to him," he told AFP.

"The one thing that has to be considered is that the intention to leave a national team or put an end to an international career needs to be communicated prior to a specific summons."

Source: China Daily