The path has been cleared for Fabien Barthez to be France's number one at Euro 2004 after Vedran Runje lost out in a strange tale of four goalkeepers at Olympique Marseille.

The Croatian, dropped for Marseille's final Champions League game at Partizan Belgrade, may have paid a belated price for his attack on coach Alain Perrin following the 4-2 defeat by Real Madrid in the opening game of their European campaign.

But Runje's demotion for Tuesday's 1-1 draw means Jeremy Gavanon is now the 20-year-old between the posts at Marseille. He will surely step aside when Barthez arrives from Manchester United on loan after the transfer window re-opens in January.

Perrin's decision to drop Runje was a brave one -- if Marseille had lost and failed to qualify for the UEFA Cup his job would have been on the line. Marseille are out of contention in the league, 12 points behind leaders Monaco.

But his decision on the basis of Runje's loss of form has neutered any opposition by fans to the arrival of Barthez, who won the European Cup with Marseille in 1993.

UNFAIRLY SACRIFICED

Many felt Runje was to be unfairly sacrificed so that Barthez, out of favour at United, could convince France coach Jacques Santini he should be his first choice at next year's European championship.

Barthez has slipped to third choice at the English champions behind Tim Howard and Roy Carroll, and one of the few full games he has played this season was a charity match between France's 1998 World Cup winners and Marseille in early October.

Number two Cedric Carasso was in goal that night for Marseille but he suffered a serious leg injury which may keep him out until the end of the season.

Within days Marseille announced they were trying to arrange Barthez's return to replace Carasso. But FIFA, world soccer's governing body, said it would not bend transfer rules to allow the move, a decision it confirmed on Tuesday after an appeal.

Marseille president Christophe Bouchet had stressed that Barthez's arrival was for the short-term while Runje, 27, remained the club's long-term choice.

But, following the events in Belgrade, Runje feels his future probably now lies elsewhere. "Does it mean that I will not play again for OM? That could be the case, we will see when the transfer window opens," he told L'Equipe newspaper.

One crucial episode early this season could now be haunting Runje. After Marseille were taken apart 4-2 by Real Madrid in their opening Champions League game, Perrin accused his players of being frightened of the Spanish champions.

Runje took exception to the criticism and told the media everyone associated with the club should take responsibility for the defeat, hinting that Perrin's decision to play only three at the back against Real played its part in the defeat.

Perrin was not impressed. "Players must know their place," he said later. "If they want to say something, they should do it before the match."