France manager Raymond Domenech insists he will not walk away from his job amid growing unpopularityDespite leading the nation to the World Cup final in 2006, Domenech has often been a figure of ridicule in his homeland for below performances.
His reputation was not helped by a mediocre World Cup qualifying campaign which ended in controversy after the Thierry Henry handball affair.
Calls from France fans for Domenech to step down ahead of the finals in South Africa have been rebuffed by the manager himself, who insists he revels under pressure.
"I have never resigned, and I will never resign," Domenech told l'express.fr. "The harder the pressure, the more I become motivated.
"I thrive on adversity. When everything's calm, I get bored, I start worrying. To leave now makes no sense.
"Let me reverse the logic. Wouldn't they think in that case 'what a coward', he's cut and run. (Resigning) would suggest that I've completed my job and that I don't give a damn about the consequences - that would give ammunition to my critics.
"People have to stop dreaming. I'm not someone who walks away. With my players we want to achieve something momentous in South Africa.
"We'll let a little time go by, see what this and that person is saying, and then kick on again."
After a disappointing showing at Euro 2008, in which France failed to progress from the group stages, Domenech looks to have survived another brush with dismissal.
However, he was forced to reiterate his stance that he did not receive around €750,000 (Ј675,000) as a bonus for World Cup qualification, as reported in the French media.
He insisted: "If it really was that, I would be as happy as anything.
"But it is way over the mark. I won't even try and contradict the information because it is their usual editorial line. It is a lie. Money is not my motivation."
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