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Before
that balmy Sunday in Berlin, Italy had lost all five
penalty shoot-outs in a World Cup final. So, when Fabian
Grosso slammed one past Fabien Barthez for a 5-3
penalties win, Italy finally buried a host of ghosts.
Three times winners before in 1934, 1938 and 1982,
Marcelo Lippi’s boys kept their heads and showed why
they deserved the crown.
Of course Zinedine Zidane’s sending off after an ill
judged head butt and the missed penalty kick from
substitute David Trezeguet will have helped Italy’s
cause a little.
What a way for Zidane to bring down the curtains on a
fantastic career for his country! Sheer brilliance on
one hand with that delicately struck seventh minute
penalty gave France the lead. And later, a moment of
utter stupidity as he head-butted Italian Materazzi to
be sent off, ignominiously ending the career of a player
that many feel was the greatest of a generation.
But he has been there before – Fuad Amin of Saudi Arabia
in the ’98 World Cup and, in 2001, Hamburg's Jochen
Kientz, during a Champions League battle, both
discovered how hard that shaved skull can be.
With play swaying from one end to the other for the full
120 minutes including extra-time, the tie had to be
broken with a shoot-out. It was the second kick hit by
Trezeguet, hitting the cross bar, that sealed the match
for the Italians. This was only the second time that a
World Cup Final had to be settled by penalties and Italy
were involved the first time too, against Brazil in
1994.
Early on few would have bet on a final between Italy and
France; the former known for their stiff defensive
tactics and the latter seen as a bunch of ageing players
heading for oblivion.
The burden of being the early favourites fell roundly on
the shoulders of hosts Germany, Brazil and Argentina.
Germany had everything going for them – home advantage,
astute, positive leadership from former star Juergen
Klinsmann and an on-field cast capable of challenging
the very best in the business.
Brazil, brimful of individual talent, was always going
to be the team to beat. Brazil struggled unconvincingly
through the initial stages but dangling the promise that
they would hit form just in time for a record sixth
title.
The fight for the World Cup was turned fully on its head
when reality struck. The Brazilians crashed out in the
face of the awesome combination of Zinedine Zidane and
Thierry Henry. The Italians kept their best for the
closing two minutes of extra-time in the first
semi-final managing to silence an entire German
audience.
Third place
Brazil
took an early flight back home to an unceremonious
reception from disappointed and exasperated fans, while
Germany battled Portugal for a 3-1 win in the often
anticlimactic third place play-off.
But it was a terrific game.
Germany found an unlikely hero in the form of Bastian
Schweinsteiger, whose two stunning drives from outside
the box found no response from the otherwise alert
Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo.
Christiano Ronaldo – pipped by Germany’s Lukas Podolski
as the ‘Best Young Player of the World Cup’ – was jeered
by the crowd at every move. Germany struck two goals
within five minutes, including an own goal from Petit,
to seal a comfortable victory.
Schweinsteiger carried out his job to perfection and
veteran Oliver Kahn ensured things stayed under control
at the other end. Substitute Nuno Gomes eventually
managed to pull one back two minutes away from the end
but the Portuguese eventually ran out of time trying to
match their 1966 achievement.
Confident Klinsmann
Despite
failing to achieve their goal of winning the World Cup
on home soil, Klinsmann felt Germany had regained
respect for their adventurous brand of football. The two
late extra-time goals left German fans heartbroken. But
while the disappointment is understandable, they can
reflect on a good World Cup – particularly when they
consider where German football was two years ago. “This
is a very young team and they have shown amazing spirit
and character to make an entire country proud,”
Klinsmann noted after his team’s loss to Italy.
Though he had no previous managerial experience,
Klinsmann managed to pass on his positive attitude to
his players. “We are optimistic and confident these
players will get better and we should not be afraid of
what is coming up in the future,” the German coach said.
Officials falter
Officials
also grabbed the headlines during this tournament. It
started badly when English referee Graham Poll flashed
three yellow cards to one player and forgot to send him
off. Others too joined in the chaos. Witness the match
between Portugal and the Netherlands when only the
goalkeepers were left unpunished.
Former FIFA referee Ali Bujsaim from the UAE who
officiated in three World Cup finals between 1994 and
2002, admitted that standards were far below
expectations. To start with, the FIFA Referees’
Committee seemed to have erred in reducing by half the
number of officials compared to 2002. FIFA selected
referees and assistants form the same countries to
ensure maximum understanding between them but it simply
did not work.
Bujsaim contended that FIFA had inadvertently stifled
officials’ ability to manage the matches by giving too
rigid instructions on dealing with situations. “If you
say that these are the best officials you have from
around the world, what is the need for FIFA to give them
instructions on how to handle a match?” Bujsaim queried.
One good outcome though was that Professor Jiri Dvorak,
FIFA’s chief medical officer, said that there had been a
considerable fall in the number of injuries to players
due to the clampdown from the match officials on
tackling from behind.
Dvorak claimed that there had been only 129 injuries
during this World Cup, compared to the 171 injuries
recorded during the 2002 World Cup in Korea/Japan.
This World Cup also recorded a low in the number of head
injuries to players – only 11 compared to the 25 in
2002. By the start of the semi-finals, FIFA had
conducted doping tests on 228 players and none had
tested positive – making this the third successive drugs
free World Cup.
The Brazilian debacle
We
all believed Carlos Alberto Parreira knew what was
necessary to lead Brazil to a record sixth title. He
arrived in Germany confident and secure, consistent in
his public statements. It seemed there was not a doubt
in his mind.
But it all went terribly awry against France.
Brazil played poorly from the start falling victim to a
Thierry Henry goal and headed home without the trophy so
many thought they would capture for a record sixth time.
It did not help that Ronaldinho, Kaka, Ronaldo and
others performed dismally but Parreira’s unexpected
changes beforeand during the made matters worse.
Parreira unexpectedly changed Brazil’s ‘magic quartet’
scheme, selecting a starting line-up with Juninho in
place of striker Adriano. Ronaldinho was moved to
forward for reasons known only to Parreira. In the 40
days Brazil spent in Europe as a build-up to the
competition, the coach rarely trained with the same team
he sent out against France on that night of shame.
Brazilian journalist Ricardo Setyon, travelling with the
team for the past three World Cups tried to figure what
led to the debacle. Forget the fact that Parreira failed
to find a winning combination after more than two years
of being with the side. It was the lack of unity, Setyon
feels, that was the common factor which eventually
proved crucial in Brazil’s early exit this year.
“Roberto Carlos was shouting at Cicinho and Ronaldo was
not on talking terms with his striking partner Adriano.
To make things worse, Kaka and Cafu kept on bumping into
each other,” Setyon observes.
Parreira had been almost deified as a coach. But his
ability to deliver team spirit to a set of individual
stars proved a mere illusion. He got things right when
Brazil fought back from a goal down, playing with five
reserves, to hand Japan a 4-1 thrashing. “Our goal is to
win the World Cup, and you don’t win a World Cup with
two teams. You can’t keep changing the way you play,” he
said. Apparently, Parreira seemed to have forgotten his
own words three days later.
Next stop: South Africa
The
cheering in Germany had scarcely stopped when we started
thinking about 2010 and South Africa.
FIFA World Cup organizers are hoping the first World Cup
on African soil will produce ‘Football for a Better
World’. FIFA flagged off preparations at Berlin’s
Brandenburg Gate the day before the final between Italy
and France.
High-ranking dignitaries included UN General Secretary
Kofi Annan, South African President Thabo Mbeki, FIFA
President Sepp Blatter and the chairman of this year’s
Organising Committee Franz Beckenbauer. Former South
African President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson
Mandela sent a live video message.
Representing the football world were several African
stars including Liberia’s George Weah, Cameroon’s Roger
Milla and Ghana’s Abedi Pele.
FIFA also used the event as an opportunity to publicise
its ‘6 Villages for 2010’ charity campaign in
conjunction with SOS Children’s Villages creating six
new children’s villages in Brazil, Mexico, Nigeria,
South Africa, Ukraine and Vietnam.
Results:
Final:
Italy beat France 5-3 (penalty shoot-out)
Third place:
Germany beat Portgual 3-1
Semi-finals:
Italy beat Germany 2-0; France beat Portugal 1-0
The FIFA World Cup Trophy
The
trophy stands 36 cms tall and is made of 4.97 kgs of
18-carat gold. Fabio Cannavaro became the ninth captain
to lift the trophy. Franz Beckenbauer was the first to
hold this trophy aloft when West Germany won it in 1974.
The trophy has been designed by Italian artist Silvio
Gazzaniga and FIFA has insured the trophy for
approximately Dhs1.8 million.
The trophy has a diameter of 13 cms depicting players
supporting the Earth from a base containing two layers
of malachite.
The part of the trophy reserved for plaques bearing the
winners’ inscription still has space for another 16
champions, meaning that it can be played for till 2038.
The World Cup winners receive the trophy for four years.
When the time comes to hand it back to owners FIFA, the
country receives a gold-plated copy.
Its predecessor, the Jules Rimet trophy named after the
former FIFA President, has meanwhile completely
disappeared from view.
Brazil were the first to take possession of that trophy
in 1970 when it won the Cup for the third time. But 13
years later, the Jules Rimet trophy was stolen and was
probably melted down by the thieves.
Before that, in 1966, the trophy disappeared during an
exhibition in London but was later recovered by a dog
named ‘Pickles’.
Facts
1. Italy have been in the World Cup Finals every 12
years since 1970. In 1982 they won and 12 years later in
1994 they went down to Brazil in the US.
2. Portugal’s previous best World Cup performance was in
1966 when they finished in third place. Although the
young Cristiano Ronaldo showed his ability to run at
defenders to lift the crowd, his tendency to fall at the
slightest touch did little to enhance his reputation.
3. Germany seems to run into a 36-year itch in securing
third place in the World Cup finals. This is the third
time that Germany has come up as the third best team.
They were placed third in 1934, and then again in 1970 –
exactly 36 years later in Mexico. The exploits of Jurgen
Klinsmann’s boys replicated their third position with a
sound 3-1 win against Portugal this time – thus denying
the Portuguese a chance to match their best-ever finish
of 1966.
4. The sem-ifinal between Germany and Italy rekindled
memories of their two epic battles in previous
tournaments. Their first classic encounter was the 1970
semi-finals in Mexico, regarded as one, if not the
greatest game in World Cup history. In the punishing
afternoon heat at the Azteca Stadium, Italy won 4-3,
thanks to a dramatic extra-time winner from Gianni
Rivera. This end-to-end match is also remembered for the
heroics of rising star Franz Beckenbauer, who dislocated
his shoulder but continued playing with his arm in a
sling. Italy were eventually beaten by Pele’s Brazil in
the final.
5. The other enthralling Italy versus Germany clash was
the 1982 final, a more one-sided affair, but equally
gripping. Italy’s Antonio Cabrini missed a 25th
minute penalty, before the Azzurri swept Germany aside
with a superb display of counter-attacking football. The
stand-out moment was Marco Tardelli’s wild celebration
after scoring Italy’s second goal, his head shaking,
fists pumping and eyes bulging in delirium. Italy won
3-1 and were crowned World Champions for a third time. | 
