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Zidane Writes A Sad Ending to Great Career
By JIM LITKE, AP Sports Columnist
Sun Jul 9, 7:23 PM ET

BERLIN - All the trophies Zinedine Zidane hoisted, all the glory he brought France, all those sparks of magic that flew off his feet game after game, year after year_ all of a sudden, it's almost like they never happened.

Because the most gifted player of his generation, playing his final match on the world stage, will be remembered now for something else � petulance, selfishness, looniness, take your pick.

All because of one moment of unbridled fury.



In the 110th minute of Sunday night's World Cup final, Zidane lost his cool, then lowered his head and butted Italian defender Marco Materazzi full-on in the chest.

Seconds earlier, with the score tied 1-1 in extra time, Materazzi had grabbed a handful of Zidane's jersey just as a French attack on goal passed harmlessly by. Then the defender let go and both players began walking back up the field exchanging words. Without warning, Materazzi fell to the ground like he'd been shot.

"I don't know what Materazzi said to Zidane," French coach Raymond Domenech said.

"But it's a shame. It's sad. He (Materazzi) did a lot of acting and for such a big man, a gust of wind made him fall over. It's regrettable.

"We regret it," Domenech added, apparently speaking for Zidane. "He regrets it."

Whatever the provocation, the effect was never in doubt. Yet few people actually saw the head-butt happen, and those who did could not believe their eyes.

But while referee Horacio Elizondo tried to sort out the chaotic scene on the field, Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon ran to the assistant referee along the sideline and began pleading his case. Replays available on television screens around the stadium made it a slam-dunk case. Elizondo walked over for a brief consultation with his assistant, and no sooner did that end than he walked up to Zidane, brandished a red card and banished No. 10 from the field.

Zidane barely protested. Slowly, he turned toward the exit leading to the locker room and began the long walk. A few times, he turned his eyes skyward. Amid a growing din of whistles, catcalls and shouts, he yelled a few words at the heavens.

And so the closest he would come to the World Cup trophy on this night was passing within arm's reach of the pedestal where it sat on display a few steps ahead of the exit.

As Zidane sat in France's locker room at the end of extra time and beyond, Italy went on to convert all five of its penalty kicks in the shootout and took home the trophy that could have been � and for a while seemed like it would have been � the crowning achievement of his career. Instead, it turned out to be the nadir.

Asked whether the French national team would miss the player who led them to a World Cup title on home soil back in 1998, Domenech didn't hesitate.

"Yes," he replied, "but we missed him the last 20 minutes. That weighed heavily in the balance."

Domenech went further than that, suggesting that Materazzi, not Italian playmaker Andrea Pirlo, deserved to be named man of the match. And he might have a point. Materazzi has a well-earned reputation as nasty player in Italy's tough Serie A, and his role in the ugly drama was nowhere near as surprising as Zidane's.

He was suspended for two months in 2004 after punching an opponent and conceded earlier in the tournament, "I can't tell you how many times my kids have been told at school that I'm a monster."

"You make mistakes in life," Materazzi added. "But then you have to purify yourself, without seeking revenge. Everyone has their destiny."

If so, he took a good man down with him.

Zidane did not speak with reporters afterward, but it's hard to imagine there was anything he could say that would justify what happened.

Almost no one was surprised when boxer Mike Tyson tried to bite off Evander Holyfield's ears in the middle of a heavyweight bout. And earlier in this tournament, when hot-headed England forward Wayne Rooney got sent off for stomping on Portugese defender Roberto Carvalho's groin, it was hardly out of character.

Players lose their cool in games all the time. They get too mad, too desperate or too determined to get revenge on the spot, and wind up doing something stupid.

But Zidane?

He was about control from the moment he left the tough streets of Marseilles to begin his professional career as a teenager. You only had to see his elegant touch with the ball a few times to know that. Zidane pulled the strings on every team he played for, always able to dictate tempo and the flow of play precisely because he was always in control.

And then came that inexplicable moment this warm summer night when he lost it � and who knows how much else in the bargain.

___

Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at [email protected]

Materazzi admits insulting Zidane
By ANDREW ROBERTS, Associated Press Writer

MILAN, Italy - Marco Materazzi admits he insulted Zinedine Zidane before the France captain head-butted him in the World Cup final. Materazzi denies calling him a "terrorist."

"I did insult him, it's true," Materazzi said in Tuesday's Gazzetta dello Sport.

"But I categorically did not call him a terrorist.

I'm not cultured and I don't even know what an Islamic terrorist is."

[Junior]

I was going to let this subject die, but then I read this a few minutes ago....

FIFA could strip Zidane of award

RivalsDM
Posted: 1 hour ago

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has hinted Zinedine Zidane could be stripped of the Golden Ball because of his actions in the World Cup final.

Zidane is expected to speak publicly for the first time about his red card on French TV on Wednesday, while Materazzi has confirmed that he insulted the former Real Madrid midfielder.

" FIFA's executive committee has the right and the duty to intervene when faced with behaviours that are against the ethic of sport."

Blatter, though, admitted he was "saddened" by Zidane's reaction and added the 34-year-old felt "he didn't merit any medal" after Sunday's final in Berlin.

He added: "I have known Zidane for many years.

"To have seen him react in that way left me saddened, for him and for fair-play.

"I have been told that he was really sad.

"I didn't see him after the game. He was apparently in bad shape.

"I was told that at the end of the game the French Federation executives asked Zidane to go and receive his medal and he replied that he didn't merit any medal."

The sending-off, despite Italy's subsequent victory on penalties, has been the main talking point of the final.

Having retired after the match, Zidane may feel uninhibited by FIFA's investigation and free to speak out.

Theories have abounded over what defender Materazzi might have said to provoke such a furious reaction from Zidane.

The former Everton defender has conceded he made an offensive remark but Zidane is yet to give his version of events, although his agent has admitted the reaction was due to a "serious comment".

Materazzi had been expected to make a statement on the matter today, but that was before FIFA announced they would be looking into the incident. FIFA have given no indication as to how long their investigation will last.

http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/5776646

The man is a gentleman and a class above.

[Junior]

Materrazi

"I held his shirt for a few seconds only, then he turned round and spoke to me, sneering," the Italian defender said. "He looked me up and down, arrogantly and said: 'If you really want my shirt, I'll give it to you afterwards."'

Materazzi is no stranger to controversy. He was suspended for two months for punching Siena defender Bruno Cirillo after a Serie A game in February 2004, and earned condemnation following a brutal tackle on Sweden and Juventus striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic in October 2005.

One Italian senator even suggested that Materazzi didn't merit selection for the Italian team because of his physical style.

http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/5774940

That materazzi is a tool, a juvenile idiot. I do hope he grows up before he is allowed to play at world cup level again. if you watch the clip, he virtually bear hugs him, tugs on his nipple and holds his shirt for about 15 seconds.
Winding up Zidane for 90 mins allowed Italy a lucky result over a team that they certainly had not matched at football.

[VanIslander]

a feeble attempt to keep the conversation going after the event is gone

move on!

it's only good as water cooler talk for those suffering withdrawl

[Guri Guy]

I think this talk is very important. Unless you don't think racism in sports is something that should be confronted and dealt with.
You can't ignore it and hope it will go away.

[ddeubel]

I'm reminded of Camus (another famous and complicated Algerian "pied noir") and a very obscure quote that always haunted me. Especially given his symbolic use of mother and sister in The Outsider....

"If I had to chose between my mother and God. I'd chose my mother."

Especially relevant given the insult and I remember an evening discussing this with Algerians in Corsica (of course they were the gardener and housekeeping staff...). Lively conversation and they were so adamant about how highly they felt regarding "mother".....

Especially reflective given the Christian and Jesus' view in Matthew where he asks us to abandon our parents if we would follow him..........Was this Camus saying that he disavowed God ? (I don't think so, he was Catholic and it was what kept him seperated from the rest of the existentialists more or less, his religious nature..).

Really don't know what he was saying but like Zidane, he had this passion for the truth and to protect the family/mother.....take no prisoners when it comes to this...

DD

[Junior]

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