After the first beams of sunshine of Euro 2008 dazzled over Lake Zurich, dark clouds and dark moods hung over the Letzigrund Stadium.

Victor Piturca, the Romania coach, could not have been less accessible or amenable to the media entourage had he based his side in Transylvania and appointed Count Dracula as his press officer.

Raymond Domenech has been even less accommodating, sending the French press corps on a wild goose chase by taking his squad on a different train route than advertised from their secluded headquarters in Mont-Pelerin, overlooking Lake Geneva, to Zurich. It made for some spiky shadow boxing before tonight's Group C undercard. "We only follow our timetable - perhaps you should speak to the Swiss government," sniped Domenech.

The French manager's thespian expertise - he once took Zidane and co on a cultural trip to see Samuel Beckett's Endgame - is lost in the soundbite era of sports writing. His deep, sinister eyebrows and peppered facial features - prerequisites for a classic Hammer Horror scientist - accentuate the feeling of foreboding when formulating a question.

In such a tense environment, the last thing he needed was a Scottish hack enquiring about the effect two qualification defeats to Scotland has had on France's respectability, pride and confidence. Ho hum.

Of the many ironic facets that make him such a complex and compelling character, Domenech barely disguises his loathing of the French sports media despite being married to one of the most distinguished of the species, Estelle Denis. Furthermore, the tarot-reading astrologer would not show them a bird's nest, far less update them on the wellbeing of Patrick Vieira of Thierry Henry or take a stab at France's fortunes in the Group of Death. Out of spite, he sipped from a bottle of Coca-Cola when a tea cup stood redundant on the podium, inviting him to take a deep and longing look inside. "I would not be offended if there are no questions asked," said Domenech.

And so it began. Such evasiveness is the hallmark of a worried man. Vieira has been quarantined since damaging a thigh during a routine training session on May 30. The coach has until an hour before kick-off to list his final 23 players and Mathieu Flamini, now of AC Milan, is on standby to replace the formidable, if increasingly fallible, presence of Vieira. Rumour has it that Henry's sciatica has also flared-up again.

"We have been quite impatient and would like the games to start," Domenech responded when asked the French language equivalent of how is the mood in the camp?'. France have unquestionably lost their air of supremacy since losing to Italy in the final of World Cup 2006. Being sunk by Gary Caldwell's shin and James McFadden's impudence can hardly have helped. Domenech is comforted by the sight of Karim Benzema straining at the leash after peripheral usage in Germany.

Tonight represents what, on paper, should be the easiest game of a group containing Italy and the Netherlands. That alone evoked anxiety in Domenech's brief sermon. "Our three opponents are big enough to inspire doubt," he said. It was a recurring theme. "Doubts are to be expected because Romania are a good team," said Lilian Thuram. "There is a lot of expectation on us."

The fragile French were in good company. Moments earlier, Piturca - who was sacked after dressing room coup before the finals of Euro 2000 - wandered into the press conference centre sporting a petted lip that, at any given moment, could transform into a scowl. How about these pearls of wisdom? Q: "How good are France?" A: "You have been asking me that for months and there is no point repeating myself."

Q: "How satisfying will the finals be after what happened in 2000?"

A: "I have been asked about that before." Q: "Does it suit Romania to be group underdogs?" A: "I haven't thought about that."

So, in conclusion, Vieira and Henry may or may not play and Romania may or may not live up to their billing as wooden-spoon contenders. At least the weather was more agreeable in Zurich.