Italy triumphs
Sunday saw Italy take on France in the 2006 World Cup finals. Though my interest in the worldcup had reduced once my favorites Argentina lost to hosts Germany in the quarter finals, I was still waiting for the finals to begin. 2 teams which were not expected to make it to the finals had made it and were fighting to win the battle. France with the likes of Zidane and Henry looked to be the likely champions. Once the quarter finals got over, I was expecting a Germany - Portugal finals. But both the teams I had expected to make it, crashed out of the tournament.
The match started at 11.30 pm IST. It was a dream start as a penalty was offered to France in the 7th minute. And as expected it was the skipper who was going to shoot the ball. The man who won the Golden Ball did'nt dissapoint as he gave France a 1-0 lead. But Materazzi equalised the scores after 19 minutes as he scored a great header of a free kick by Pirlo. With the scores levelled at 1 each, the audience were witnessing a great finals.
The game progressed to extra time as both teams were looking for a chance to raise their scores. There was some tense moments as Zidane was sent out for head butting. It was an ugly incident , ending the skipper's dream run at the world cup. Earlier there was a stunning Zidane's header save by Gianluigi Buffon preventing France from taking the lead only adding to the tense moments. And as the half time came to an end, a penalty shootout was in the proceeding.
Other than France's David Trezeguet, none of the other players commited an error in scoring penalties. Both the team goal keeper's were left clueless as the players scored easy penalties. David Trezeguet's crossbar hit gave Italy its title, the final scores reading 5-3.
Overall it was not a great finals , but one which witnessed several tense moments. Zidane's head butting and Gianluigi's great save would be remembered for many years to come. Italy would always be remembered as a team which won the title not through individual brilliance, but through sheer team effort. Well done Italy.
Prasanna wrote... [Thoughts]
5 comments
5 Comments:
Prasanna,
Buffon's saving the deadly header from Zidane was the crucial point of the game. If France would have scored then, I guess Italy could n't have equalized it again as they were feeling fatigue. It was so disappointing for me to see one of my favorite player being sent out, on his last international appearance. I don't know what Zidane was thinking.
sesh, Zidanne is generally a person who loses his temper easily. He was sent out in previous tournaments too. So when he was pulled by Materazzi, who has admitted to have insulted him, he got pissed off. He shld have controlled his temper for a few more minutes, but unfortunately, he didnt. His stay cld have seen France become the winners. Bad luck
yeah,prasanna u r right.but one need to apprecitae this italian team for winning this world cup amidst the match fixing scandal in their home.FABIO CANNAVARO was rock solid and GATTUSO are awesome throghtout the tournamemnt as BUFFON.
rajesh, i really liked the way the entire team gave a great competition to all its rivals. For a team which was least expected to even make it to the semis, this is a fantastic achievement. Team work pays and this was a perfect example.
I find some information here.
Post a Comment
<< Home