quote:

Originally posted by paranoik0 ok, fine, it is punishable. now please explain why physically assaulting another player is given nearly the same exact suspension. it basically means that for FIFA throwing away a bunch of insults or attacking another player is the same. do you agree with this? i sure as hell don't. plus, we are talking about a WORLD CUP FINAL, the match most watched in the world in every 4 years. shouldn't punishments multiply? similar agressions in national leagues have been given more suspension matches!

In an ordinary situation perhaps I would agree with you, but this is Marco Materazzi we're talking about. He's one of the most disgraced players in the game, he's lucky he's still playing professional football.

He has always been in the spotlight, players he has attacked or deliberately tried to injure on the pitch. Remember when he kicked Shevchenko in the back of the head or kneed him in the balls, or when he went in studs up and kicked Inzaghi in the chest, in a pre-season friendly! What about his elbow on Villarreal's Sorin during the Champions League? What about when he punched Siena's Cirilla in the face and got a two month ban? Or his alleged comments during the Messina game as their black player, Zoro, walked off the pitch in protest at racist taunts. Or what about that disgraceful tackle which injured Ibrahimovic? This list goes on and on. At Everton he was given twelve yellow and three red cards - in one season!

There are a lot of people who would like to see him banned from football altogether.

As for this setting a precedent, Materazzi has admitting committing a red card offense as he has admitted to verbal abuse. Zidane's ban, meanwhile, is irrelevant as he's retired.

Last edited by evil_bastard on Jul-21-2006 at 12:19

Materazzi is scum, there isn't any doubt about it. Thing is, Zidane has quite some record as well, of random violence apparently for no reason. You say Zidane's ban is irrelevant, but I don't fully agree: it might be symbolic, but FIFA could use it to send a message that they really don't want violence in the field. With this ban they're basically sending the opposite message.

quote:

Originally posted by evil_bastard Those two statements really don't add up. Never mind. Regarding Zidane, I agree with the BBC when they say that, bizarrely, Zidane may not only have come out of this incident with his reputation intact, but seemingly enhanced. He certainly went out with a bang and for many it has brought him closer to the people, they've seen that he is human like the rest of us and prone to error. He had become such a god-like figure in France, voted the most liked Frenchman ever and once even tipped to be president. He's had problems with his temper before, but they were most frequently in his early days as a player at Cannes. As the son of Algerian immigrants he grew up in Marseille's notoriously poor La Castellane district and was often mocked on the field for his parentage and upbringing. He amassed quite a few red cards in his early playing days for headbutting players who verbally abused him, but later cleaned up his act while at Real Madrid. To see him do that with all his experience shocked the world but perhaps, as his teammate Thierry Henry said, you can take a man out of the ghetto but you can't take the ghetto out of the man. In the end I think the pressure and emotion of the situation got to him and Materazzi pressed the right buttons. I don't think Zidane will be remembered just for his headbutt. Eric Cantona, who also grew up in Marseille, shocked the footballing world when he did a flying kick into the chest of a fan in the middle of a Premiership game. Yet, 11 years on he is remembered as a player who lit up the game with his magic on the pitch, a misunderstood genius, if you like. I believe Zidane will go down in history with the same image, a misunderstood genius whose final moments in football were to headbutt an opponent in a World Cup final and then collect the Golden Ball as the best player in the World Cup, at the age of 34. We'll remember his winning goal in the Champions League final, his winning goals in the World Cup final, his La Liga and Serie A title, his three World Player of the Year awards. He retires the game having won everything and many consider him to be one of the greatest footballers ever, people don't forget players like that.

a BIG +1.

his legend lives on.

quote:

Originally posted by evil_bastard He has always been in the spotlight, players he has attacked or deliberately tried to injure on the pitch. Remember when he kicked Shevchenko in the back of the head or kneed him in the balls, or when he went in studs up and kicked Inzaghi in the chest, in a pre-season friendly! What about his elbow on Villarreal's Sorin during the Champions League? What about when he punched Siena's Cirilla in the face and got a two month ban? Or his alleged comments during the Messina game as their black player, Zoro, walked off the pitch in protest at racist taunts. Or what about that disgraceful tackle which injured Ibrahimovic? This list goes on and on. At Everton he was given twelve yellow and three red cards - in one season! .

Thats irrelavant. A player should be punished for the incident in question, not for other things he has done and got away with.

___________________
Liverpool Champions of Europe 2005!


TA's NFL survival League winner 2006!

quote:

Originally posted by Michael19 Thats irrelavant. A player should be punished for the incident in question, not for other things he has done and got away with.

True, but Materazzi went and admitted to the media he had used abusive language during the game, hence why FIFA launched an inquiry. He's admitted to comitting a red card offence which would normally mean a 3-match ban.

As Tim Vickery pointed out on the BBC column today, Pele knocked out a Uruguayan defender in the 1970 World Cup semi-final but the ref didn't see it. He should have missed the final but he got away with it. Even Pele's strike partner Tostao said he should have been sent off. Yet 36 years on does anyone talk about it? I don't think this is going to affect Zidane's footballing reputation the way people say it will. The entire reason the Italian players targetted him is because he was the biggest threat to them, just as Pele was targetted by his opponents all those years ago.

world cup. all the matches, all the players, everything to absorb... and yet all i really remember is the headbutt. everything else is background now.

Look at what I bought today:

quote:

Originally posted by jdat Look at what I bought today:

nice. I have the jersey as well. best 100 bucks I ever spent.

quote:

Originally posted by Aristronica world cup. all the matches, all the players, everything to absorb... and yet all i really remember is the headbutt. everything else is background now.

hmmm conspiracy? I think so.

quote:

Originally posted by RapidFire nice. I have the jersey as well. best 100 bucks I ever spent.

Dude .... don't you get it?


There's something wrong there !

quote:

Originally posted by RapidFire nice. I have the jersey as well. best 100 bucks I ever spent.

open your eyes

___________________
"A style that's impossible to define. Prog? Hardly. Tech house? Not boring enough. It's like trippy twisted acid house but deep and funky. See, I told you - impossible."