Stifled...

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

World Cup...

The World Cup drew to a close yesterday morning with me watching it live on TV, in camp.

I'm not really into soccer, but I caught it nonetheless as I was seduced by the fact that the event happens only once in 4 years, as rare as a person being born of the 29th of February.

I thought France would have won the cup, with Zizou lifting the trophy in front of the Germans, but that didn't happen.

Zizou scored a cheeky penalty for France, putting them forward just 7 minutes into the game. Things was looking fine for the French, but not for long.

Towering Materazzi overcame the midfield powerhouse Patrick Viera in the 19th minute to connect Pirlo's corner, creating a goal and causing a draw.

This score dragged on for the rest of the game, including extra time. The Italians had a better first half, and the French dominated most of the second half.

Both teams threatened, on several occasions, to break the deadlock, but failed. The most notable attemp was by Zizou as he headed a powerful shot in the direction of the Italian goal, only to be saved by the best goalkeeper in the tournament, Buffon.

At the 111th minute, the most intriguing moment of the game occurred. Zizou, being a gentleman everyone knows, catapulted his bald head into the chest of the big Materazzi. No one, till now, knows the reason behind that action, but a red card was given and Zizou, France's creative force on the pitch, was sent off to the dressing room.

Extra time ended with a goal from both sides. Henry and Ribery was strangely taken off the field before the game ended, and were replaced by Trezeguet and Wiltord, who did not really create any trouble for the Italians.

The cup went to the Italians after they defeated the French in a penalty shoot-out. They won it 5-3, with a miss from Trezeguet. Defeat was mercilessly pelted onto the face of the French. I seriously thought that Zizou's red card had a huge impact on the outcome. But what I thought was really wrong, was France's coach taking Henry and Ribery off. They were doing well.

So there you have it. Italy, the four-time world champion, has only won the cup 1 time less than Brazil. We shall see if they can defend the cup and tie Brazil's record in 2010.

End...

Hanged @ 12:57 PM