Neowin's Official World Cup 2006 Thread

[killme]

I wonder why zidane did it. I think materazzi told him something, judging from the way he turned round. I dont france deserved to lose cos of one player though.

Zidane was clearly provoked over and over by that guy. Watch the reply after Zidane talks to him about his hand he says something to Zidane, BUT NEVER MAKES EYE CONTACT when hes saying this to zidane this clearly shows it was something stupid and very offensive. Zidane smiles and walks off this point camera follows zidane and we dont know if he said it again or zidane took late offence but he turns around and head buts his chest.

THink about it guys a veteran like Zidane WOULD NEVER do anything stupid like that if there wasnt legit reason for him to do it. The whole world cup he has been cool calm hardly EVER argues with the officials. Definately provoked, just like Tyson when he bit Holyfields ear. The world remembers that Tyson bit his ear off in a mad rage, the other side of the story makes more sense when Holyfield kept on headbutting him opening up a 3 inch cut above his eye and so Tyson retaliated. Same with Zidane the world will remember him as a madman headbutting another player but there are always 2 sides to a story.

no matter what zidanne is still one of the greatest player of our time.

Yeah I bet you'd keep your cool live too if I started making 'certain innuendos' about your mother, perhaps your sister and a little racial slur in the mix.

Easy to judge, hard to understand.

(Y) (Y)

[Ambience]

Hmm, and Figo got a yellow for his little head-butt earlier in the tournament, isn't that right?

[blackspawn]

THink about it guys a veteran like Zidane WOULD NEVER do anything stupid like that if there wasnt legit reason for him to do it. The whole world cup he has been cool calm hardly EVER argues with the officials. Definately provoked, just like Tyson when he bit Holyfields ear. The world remembers that Tyson bit his ear off in a mad rage, the other side of the story makes more sense when Holyfield kept on headbutting him opening up a 3 inch cut above his eye and so Tyson retaliated. Same with Zidane the world will remember him as a madman headbutting another player but there are always 2 sides to a story.

"Legit reason"? Sorry but what could possibly be a LEGIT REASON (knowing that there were only words exchanged) to headbut someone in the chest??? :blink:

They are professional players with years of experience there is NOTHING Materazzi could have said that would justify what Zidane did. If he (Materazzi) insulted Zidane in any way, an appropriate response would be to insult him back not headbut him in the chest!! Part of the game is getting inside your oponents head and messing with it (in all team sports), the reason? to provoke exactly this type of reaction or to destabilize the player so he doesn't reach his full potencial.

Sorry but this was all Zidane's, he could have chosen to ignore Materazzi's words but instead he decided to headbut him... and by doing that he knew he would be sent off, knew he would hurt his team... sometimes people do IRRACIONAL things because of rage, pressure, whatever. He should have know better but sometimes even the most calm and peacefull people crack!

Your comparison to boxe is not fair because boxe is all about violence (add to that years of people punching your brain to mush and...) football (or scoccer) isn't.

[Matrix XII]

Syphern: There is absolutely no legit reason. You saw what happened, be objective

[Gee.B]

What Zidane did was very wrong, very stupid but also so great.

Com'on i mean over here in France he's put on a pedestrial and what he did just showed us that however good you may be playing you 're still subjected to tensions and pulsions. He think he did it good... Why would he care actually??? he's the best player in the world. Smart people will remember his 25 years of career not that stupid red card he got . Actually if this is remembered that 'd be for having the courage not to compromise in front of a racist italian player and this, IMO, looks much more heroic than to accept a perpetual racism ....

Also such an act is so surprising especially coming from Zidane, we all know it was sort of justified.

If the Italians have played a great game in this wordcup, they certainly were dominated in the final game. Neverthelmess they desverse the cup because they are great players but really this vixctory is tainted in many way: racist aggression, 11 players against 10, winning on shoutout....

I prefer to remember the french victory 3-0 against brazil ;)

[Mohsin Naqi]

Perhaps Zidane saw what was coming, so he thought I better not be a part of it when we lose and people will say France lost because Zidane was sent off the ground.

[Vykranth]

It may be surprising but it has just been announced that on the news that Zinedine Zidane has been designated Best player of the 2006 World Cup.

Mohsin, The French team motto that glued the team together was "We live together, we die together".

It's not just possible that he would leave his team-mates alone. That's just not him.

[ekerazha]

The penalty wasn't fake. Materazzi caught Maloudas foot, which made him fall. It may not look clear from the angle you watch most the match from, but watch the replays and its as clear as day. And the time he got tackled in the second half was a penalty too (but it wasn't awarded), as the defender did not win the ball.

Take a look from the cam behind Materazzi, he raises the leg but he doesn't touch the Franch player... or maybe there's a micro touch that cannot cause the French player to fall down in that way, he clearly dives.

[Setnom]

It may be surprising but it has just been announced that on the news that Zinedine Zidane has been designated Best player of the 2006 World Cup.

Yes, it is surprising. Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't win the best young player of the WC because of his "dives", but Zidane wins the best player of 2006 WC, not withstanding that horrific headbutt... FIFA is not very coherent, is it? :x

But perhaps this isn't really that surprising... it was a decision made a long time ago (by you know who), and smells more like politics and less like sports.

[dpanda]

whatever materazzi said to him, he shouldnt have let his anger take over him.

his a great player and he shouldnt have stain his end of the career. people who dont know him will use this to trash talk about him even though he is more then that.

i do agree france was the better team in domination in the second half but domination and possession doesnt win the game. ghana had better possession then brazil in their game but they couldnt finish and that was what cause them the place in quarterfinal.

and dont forget we have buffon as our goalkeeper. nobody can say his not amazing at stopping goals. (even thou he says he doesnt have confidence in penalties)

needless to say italys were also very stress on taking penalties considering their history at it, so wasn't it a feat that they manage to get all in.

and trezeguet didn't have the heart to score against his good friend/teammate was not really appropriate.

he may have know the goalstopping ability of buffon which cause him his cool in taking the penalty but it certainly couldnt be.."his my good friend/teammate, i can't score against him"

trezeguet didnt have a good start in the tournament which may also be the cause of his mistake in the penalty.

in the end italy won and france lost. the whole italy bashing is just childish. people should learn how to accept it and move on.

[FlibbyFlobby]

Take a look from the cam behind Materazzi, he raises the leg but he doesn't touch the Franch player... or maybe there's a micro touch that cannot cause the French player to fall down in that way, he clearly dives.

I've seen it from that angle zoomed in, and his studs made contact with Malouda's heel. The contact made Malouda's leg move in the way of his other leg causing him to trip over himself. At running speed a slight touch is more than enough to send a player flying onto their face. Granted Materazzi tried to withdraw his leg but it was too late, he made contact. It was 'micro' contact as you said, but its enough to cause Malouda to trip over himself, which is a foul.

[Miuku.]

trezeguet didnt have a good start in the tournament which may also be the cause of his mistake in the penalty.

Well they gave the guy 90 minutes in total playtime during the whole tournament - how could the coach expect the guy to be in top shape in the first place.

They should've put him on the field earlier, imho.

[dpanda]

Well they gave the guy 90 minutes in total playtime during the whole tournament - how could the coach expect the guy to be in top shape in the first place.

They should've put him on the field earlier, imho.

i agree with you. seems like the coach had some disagreement with him i heard. his a great player and he would have make a difference in top shape.

the coach put him out for the last minute during one of the last games. i wouldn't want to be him when your coach calls you out for a last minute play.

seems like the coach just put him out because he score a golden goal against italy 6 years ago and wanted to repeat history.

[ekerazha]

I've seen it from that angle zoomed in, and his studs made contact with Malouda's heel. The contact made Malouda's leg move in the way of his other leg causing him to trip over himself. At running speed a slight touch is more than enough to send a player flying onto their face. Granted Materazzi tried to withdraw his leg but it was too late, he made contact. It was 'micro' contact as you said, but its enough to cause Malouda to trip over himself, which is a foul.

I've seen it zoomed in from the behind and the Materazzi's leg just brush (maybe he neither touch him) the French player... I've seen this from a *very* clear position... the "Malouda's leg move in the way of his other leg causing him to trip over himself" was a Malouda simulation, he dives when Materazzi is near him with the leg.

[FlibbyFlobby]

I've seen it zoomed in from the behind and the Materazzi's leg just brush (maybe he neither touch him) the French player... I've seen this from a *very* clear position... the "Malouda's leg move in the way of his other leg causing him to trip over himself" was a Malouda simulation, he dives when Materazzi is near him with the leg.

It wasn't a dive. No offence but I saw the replay 6 times and I trust the commentators and my own eyes enough to know what I saw, which was a foul. Regardless, Italy won so does it still matter?

[ekerazha]

It wasn't a dive. No offence but I saw the replay 6 times and I trust the commentators and my own eyes enough to know what I saw, which was a foul. Regardless, Italy won so does it still matter?

Italy won but I don't like you say false things.

Maybe you have seen the replay from a not-so-good position. In a first time it seemed penalty to me too... then I've seen 2 times the replay from another cam (not an "international cam", a private channel cam) and that was the cam *behind* Materazzi and I saw very clearly he didn't touch Malouda. (and I've become very angry eh eh).

Edited July 10, 2006 by ekerazha

[S.MULLA]

from reports it looks like materazzi said to Zidane that he was going to molest his children (this hasnt been officially confirmed though by FIFA) just as zidane had his back on him and was walking away.... then zidane did what he did...

i think FIFA should disqualify materazzi and fine him-but then again they only got the word of zidane to go with :/ . Zidane deserved soo much more for his final international game- he was an awsome player over the last decade :yes:

the world cup doesnt belong to Italy- they play with dirty tactics just like portugal (but portugal dive like crazy) (except gusso- who is awsome) and with the curruption on Series A with Juve - its sad to see football like this.

germany placed on a brillaint world cup as hosts.. the World cup was awsome while it lasted.. and now South Africa in 2010 :bounce:

[dpanda]

whatever materazzi said still doesnt justify his actions. his such an experienced player and he should really have know better then to headbutt him. you can't let insults get to you in a game like this.

whatever happen to "stick and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me".

[ekerazha]

the world cup doesnt belong to Italy- they play with dirty tactics just like portugal (but portugal dive like crazy) (except gusso- who is awsome) and with the curruption on Series A with Juve - its sad to see football like this.

That was so dirty that Italy never loose.

And... Serie A and the World Cup are two different things. And maybe you shouldn't talk about things you don't know: In Italy there were corrupted managers and referees, but this has nothing to do with the players that play football... *these players* won against every team (except a draw with USA :p), not the corrupted managers, not the corrupted referees, so this has nothing to do with what we are talking about.

[FlibbyFlobby]

Italy won but I don't like you say false things.

Maybe you have seen the replay from a not-so-good position. In a first time it seemed penalty to me too... then I've seen 2 times the replay from another cam (not an "international cam", a private channel cam) and that was the cam *behind* Materazzi and I saw very clearly he didn't touch Malouda. (and I've become very angry eh eh).

Materazzi touched Malouda. They showed replays from every angle zoomed in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLbnVlC5gNM...italy%20penalty

Watch the final replay of the foul, you'll see the contact. Sure he tried to pull back his leg, but he still made contact. :yes:

[S.MULLA]

And... Serie A and the World Cup are two different things.

yes- thanks for stating the obvious?

of course everyone knows it was the managment team etc who were involved in the scandle- not the players- but it makes a long deep scar on italian football.. which reflects globally on the international stage.

if you watched the BBC coverage they were always talking about the scandle more than the football italy were playing.

Buffon is a brilliant goaly- he's made some superb saves in the WC06- and italy do have a solid defence which was reflected with only one goal during the tournament (excluding penalties).

And the win against germany was brillby the italians- the 2 goals were both superb class.

maybe FIFA will have better ref management next WC.

[ekerazha]

Materazzi touched Malouda. They showed replays from every angle zoomed in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLbnVlC5gNM...italy%20penalty

Watch the final replay of the foul, you'll see the contact. :yes:

Yeah... look at this video. The Materazzi's leg *doesn't touch* Malouda at all... the Materazzi's leg go behind the Malouda's bottom, he doesn't touch him at all.

And look at the comments on that page:

"lol, great dive by Malouda"

"head butting son of a bitch"

Maybe your point-of-view isn't very popular... do you know why? Because it's *so* clear that there wasn't any contact... I hope many people will see this proof of the Malouda's great dive.

[eavere]

from reports it looks like materazzi said to Zidane that he was going to molest his children (this hasnt been officially confirmed though by FIFA) just as zidane had his back on him and was walking away.... then zidane did what he did...

i think FIFA should disqualify materazzi and fine him-but then again they only got the word of zidane to go with :/ . Zidane deserved soo much more for his final international game- he was an awsome player over the last decade :yes:

the world cup doesnt belong to Italy- they play with dirty tactics just like portugal (but portugal dive like crazy) (except gusso- who is awsome) and with the curruption on Series A with Juve - its sad to see football like this.

germany placed on a brillaint world cup as hosts.. the World cup was awsome while it lasted.. and now South Africa in 2010 :bounce:

You must be kidding, right? no one knows what Materazzi said to Zidane, none of them told what happened out there so shut up and don't lie. Keep your grudge towards Italy for yourself, they won the world cup and they fully deserved it, no team played with heart like they did.

And by the way verbally insulting your opponent happens everyday in football, Zidane acted like an animal and fully deserved the red card.

[ekerazha]

yes- thanks for stating the obvious?

You seemed to not understand this obvious.

of course everyone knows it was the managment team etc who were involved in the scandle- not the players- but it makes a long deep scar on italian football.. which reflects globally on the international stage.

And who won the World Cup? The players (it's obvious, isn't it?)... so what are you talking for? :)

if you watched the BBC coverage they were always talking about the scandle more than the football italy were playing.

I live in Italy and I'am Italian... I think every common Italian knows about the "italian scandle" more than what a foreign tv (BBC) knows. It's more than 1 month that everyday in Italy we talk about this scandle.

If BBC made this... then it is a bad TV ;)

[FlibbyFlobby]

Yeah... look at this video. The Materazzi's leg *doesn't touch* Malouda at all... the Materazzi's leg go behind the Malouda's bottom, he doesn't touch him at all.

And look at the comments on that page:

"lol, great dive by Malouda"

"head butting son of a bitch"

Maybe your point-of-view isn't very popular... do you know why? Because it's *so* clear that there wasn't any contact... I hope many people will see this proof of the Malouda's great dive.

All the comments on YouTube show is that alot of Italian supporters hang out there, nothing more. Just because your viewpoint is popular doesn't make it correct either. The referees viewpoint wasn't popular, but he was correct none the less in his decision; video evidence even backs it as being correct. Discussion over. You should be celebrating your (deserved) victory, not getting shirty over something so petty. :p

On the topic of Zindane, why on earth have Fifa given him the Golden Ball? If you get sent off for violence (regardless of how well you play in other games) you should be excluded from winning it. All this shows is the hypocrisy of Fifa. Tough on dives, tough on violence, yeah right.