French rugby greats have lamented the decline in their game, blaming the influx of the overseas stars on their club competition as All Blacks stars like Dan Carter, Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu get set to join the foreign legion.

France take on England at Twickenham this weekend looking to salvage another disappointing Six Nations campaign.

But some of their top players have pointed the finger firmly at foreign players for ruining their rugby as Top 14 clubs continue to target superstars from New Zealand, Australia and France with massive offers.

Carter is set to become the highest paid rugby player when he joins rich Paris club Racing Metro after this year's World Cup.

Nonu will join big-spending French and European champions Toulon and his good friend Smith is heading to the ambitious Pau club.

More are expected to be targeted in the leadup to the World Cup.

"To me, the problem is that we have too many foreign players in the Top 14 and all the good young French players don't play enough," Yachvili told the Daily Mail.

"The clubs prefer buying a South African player, or a Kiwi player or an Australian player – maybe because they think it is safer to do that. The young players don't play and that is not good.

"When young players arrive in the French team, they don't have enough experience of the high level. A few years ago, you had to be good for one or two years for your club, before you could be picked for France. Now you just have to do one good move in a match."

Former French flanker Serge Betsen, who had a decent spell in the English scene with Wasps, believes the England quota system works better.

"The politicians need to help the youngsters to get experience at the highest level. English rugby organises things to give their national players priority," Betsen said.

"During my time at Biarritz, I played with Joe Roff, who won the World Cup with Australia. These kind of players showed me how to improve. To be in contact with them is important, but you still need to give opportunities to the youngsters. We've got a lot of talented players like Gael Fickou and Wesley Fofana. But Fickou needs the time to express his talent. I don't know why he hasn't had the time.'"

Statistics show that the number of French players in the Top 14 squads had dipped to 45 per cent this season. Across the channel English player make up 72 per cent of the squads in the English Premiership.

Foreign styles and influences have swamped the French game and Yachvili believes the famous flair is disappearing from Les Blues.

"Yes, yes. We have lost our French rugby a little bit, because a lot of foreign players have come to play for the French clubs and they have another culture and another way of playing. We must try to keep the French flair, but I think we have lost that a bit," he said.

"It is in our DNA to play intuitive rugby. We don't have the best organisation and the best game-plans in the world, but what we have more than other nations is this way to attack from everywhere. But we must be open-minded and free to play this rugby, and at the moment I think we're not free"