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Former French international and current coach of Bordeaux Laurent Blanc moved closer to becoming the football coach of France after the French Football Federation (FFF) reached an agreement with his club on Thursday.

The agreement was reached after Bordeaux’s president Jean-Louis Triaud and FFF President Jean-Pierre Escalettes had a meeting, said the club in a statement. They sorted out their differences regarding Blanc’s departure since the Bordeaux coach still has a year before his contract expires.

The 44-year-old coach now has a clear way to replace present French coach Raymond Domenech, who is leaving his post in July, after the 2010 World Cup.

Triaud previously expressed anger at Blanc’s early announcement as a potential candidate, saying that it was “very premature”, and claimed that such move will cost his team €20 million.

“A federation cannot simply go at will and hire a coach who is already working. This contributed to our sporting failure”, Traiud said.

The sports newspaper L’Equipe reported that Bordeaux is finally going to settle for compensation worth €1.5 million. Blanc also demands to bring Jean-Louis Gasset, his present deputy coach, with him to the French squad.

Blanc, a defender who won a World Cup and a Euro Cup as a player in the national team, led Bordeaux to the league title last year and to the Champions League quarterfinals this season, losing to rivals Lyon.

However, his team only finished sixth in Europe in the league matches’ final round last Saturday.

World Cup winner Laurent Blanc will quit his post as Bordeaux’s coach and become France’s manager after the World Cup this summer, replacing current boss Raymond Domenech.

The 44-year-old former defender of Manchester United led Bordeaux during last year’s League and Cup Double. However, his team finished the season with no trophy. He was included in the French team that prevailed in the 1998 World Cup as well as the Euro 2000.

France’s federation is anticipated to formally confirm Blanc as the successor of Domenech on Thursday.

“Girondons Bordeaux have been informed by Laurent Blanc that he wanted to answer favourably to the French federation (FFF)’s solicitation to become the France coach”, said Bordeaux in a statement. “Girondins Bordeaux expect to hear from the FFF on the question of the compensation linked to the release of their coach”.

Blanc had been successful in his career as the centre-back of Marseille, Inter Milan, and Barcelona. However, after his success as Bordeaux’s manager in 2009, his team only finished sixth this season and was eliminated from the Champions League during the quarterfinals by Lyon.

Domenech also suffered the frustrations of the fans, after a disappointing campaign in the Euro 2008 where the French squad only gained one point and finished at the bottom of the group.

Yet the French manager said that he had not been informed yet whether Blanc will replace him after next month’s World Cup in South Africa.

“I’m not the one who decides on this”, Domenech said. “Blanc proved he was able to be in charge at club level. But coaching a national team is a different job. He will have to be ready immediately because the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign starts in September”.

France will begin their campaign in the World Cup on 11 June against Uruguay.

Michel Platini, the UEFA president, believes that Laurent Blanc should be the next coach of Les Bleus, although he admitted that his influence on the decision seems to be little.

The France Football Federation council is expected to decide, when they meet on 20 May, who will replace Raymond Domenech after the World Cup.

Platini has given his support to the Bordeaux coach, who also heads a short list that includes Jean Tigana, Didier Deschamps and current assistant coach Alain Boghossian.

“Laurent Blanc, that would be a good choice,” Platini said in an interview. “But it is the federal council who will choose, not me.

“It’s good that the transition is going smoothly. That will disturb neither the players nor Raymond. Just the opposite, the players will want to make a good impression around the new coach.”

The UEFA president said last week that he believed France would advance through the group stage but is unlikely to win the tournament. He also insisted that the French national football team can begin anew after a poor qualifying campaign.

Nonetheless, Platini urged the players to improve gear in South Africa, calling for more effort from the most of them.

“The World Cup has nothing to do with the qualifiers,” he added. “We’re starting again from zero.

“The players will be good, they will prepare themselves.”

He noted, after considering the number of players who rested during the year, that the national team would do well in the World Cup.