Materazzi Fancies Zidane’s Sister
By: Bob | September 5th, 2006
After much erroneous speculation and many failed efforts at lip reading, we finally learn today that magic words that Italy’s Marco Materazzi uttered during the World Cup final that lead to France’s Zinedine Zidane’s head butt breakdown.
“I did not cause it,” he said. “I answered verbally with a provocation to defend myself. Yes, I was tugging his shirt, but when he said to me scornfully ‘If you want my shirt so much I’ll give it to you afterwards,’ is that not a provocation? I answered that I’d prefer his sister, it’s true.
“It’s not a particularly nice thing to say, I recognise that. But loads of players say worse things … I didn’t even know he had a sister before all this happened.”
There are a couple of surprising things about this revelation. The first is that Materazzi actually has the ability to be (somewhat) quick-witted. Granted, the better playground retort would have referred to Zidane’s mother and not his sister, but considering the anger the insult provoked, Materazzi probably saved his own life by sticking to the tried and true sister insult.
The second surprise is that Zidane would fall for such bait. Really, he has to have heard worse things during his playing career. The thought of Materazzi shagging anyone’s sister is disturbing enough to make us want to poke our eyes out, but we still find it hard to believe that it led to the Zizou breakdown. He must really love his sister. How sweet.
Category: World Football
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You’re assuming of course that Zidane’s reaction was entirely due to whatever it was Materazzi said - which is the big mistake everyone has made with this overhyped incident. As you yourself point out, Zidane must have heard far worse things throughout his career - he spent 5 successful years at Juve, for heaven’s sake. Hardly a club for easily insulted sensitive souls. So why this reaction for this insult? It’s amazing how so few people make the obvious conclusion: by the time Mati said whatever it was that he said, Zidane was already in a vulnerable state of mind. Under enormous pressure, his mother ill, his great mentor (a 2nd father) died during the tournament without Zidane speaking to him a final time, his team under constant racist verbal abuse by French racists and racist fans in Germany whenever the French team got off their squad bus, singled out by the italians for constant verbal and physical assaults for over 90 minutes, having held the team together with Vieira and Thuram despite a difficult coach for weeks, in serious pain from his shoulder (he’d asked to be subbed at one point), seeing 3 of his most critical players leave the pitch wounded and exhausted…buffon and other italy players were his fellow Juve teammates, they knew how to get to him. Mati’s trick was a deliberate ploy to get France’s best penalty taker kicked off the pitch. It worked. Yes, it was a stupid trick for him to have fallen for, but you’re assuming that Zidane at that point was at his top form mentally. It’s obvious that it all finally got to him. It wouldn’t have taken very much at that point to drive him over the edge.
You also seem to take Mati’s word at face value. Just because Zidane said sarcastically that Mati could have his shirt (after Mati pulled on it, and tweaked his nipple), that’s a legitimate reason for hurling personal obscenities at the captain of the opposing team (Mati’s so-called “hero”) during the final of world cup? That’s either a lie or it shows that poor Mati boy is so easily offended that he can’t handled an incredibly bland, mild sarcastic remark.
Given the man’s record and his constant disingenuous attempts to convince referees that he’s innocent of any wrongdoing on the pitch after one of his many acts of brutality, the guy’s word on anything can’t be taken seriously. And this was not the first time in the tournament he tried to get a player kicked off the pitch.
Posted from
United States
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Zidane’s sister looks amazingly like his wife. (Or vice versa.) And they both bear a striking resemblance to his mother.
Oedipal issues, anyone?
Posted from
United States -
Laurie,
Very interesting point, that would explain (not excuse) his actions on the field that day.
Posted from
Canada -
Oh brother, i love this cheap armchair psychobabble.
Posted from
United States -
lazaro your a f**king retard, you need a serious beating.
Change your name to LoseroPosted from
Canada -
Sorry, lazaro, but your theory doesn’t fly. Italy had no substitutions left when the indicident happened. Why would they risk having Materazzi getting seriously injured enough to have to leave the pitch, leaving Italy with 10 men, to get Zidane kicked off in the second half of overtime when he was obviously already hobbled? Your litany of problems with the French team is probably what lead Zizou to blow his top an minimal provocation from Materazzi, not any conspiracy by the Italians.
I think you should look at Zidane’s record of violence while we’re looking at history. This was neither man’s first time at the dance, but it was Zidane who lost it. Accept the truth and put the blame where it belongs.
Posted from
United States -
Lazaro, remember the legal saying:
Verba volant, acta manent
Words fly away, actions remain.
Players insult each other constantly, and referees don’t pay attention. It’s logical, otherwise after 30′all 22 players would be expelled.
Actions must be punished because they lead to physical damage,sometimes very serious.
Zidane was let off ridiculously easy, and they gave him the Gold Ball too.He was red carded 13 times in his career, and had head-butted people before.
I am inclined to believe that all factors you list have played a role in his violent response. And being of Algerian ancestry in a country where his people are often discriminated against must be mentioned also.Posted from
United States -
“Why would they risk having Materazzi getting seriously injured enough to have to leave the pitch, leaving Italy with 10 men, to get Zidane kicked off in the second half of overtime when he was obviously already hobbled?”
Oh come on. It was a calculated risk. There were less than 10 minutes before penalties, getting France’s best penalty taker off the pitch would certainly be worth losing one man. They’d still be even at 10 men. Your response holds no water.
And don’t tell me about Zidane’s history, I know it well, I’ve been watching him since his last year at Bordeaux. Tell me, how long have you been watching him? Seems that the whole world now is full of Zidane football experts based entirely on one moment in one single match. And I also know Materazzi’s history (which you hypocritically discount).
I put the blame exactly where it belongs: on both Zidane and Materazzi. But I guess you’re one of those people who thinks it’s perfectly acceptable to hurl personal obscenities repeatedly at opposing players, even during the final of a world cup. Sorry, I agree with the NBA, which banned personal insults in order to avoid situations that could escalate into violence.
Interesting report from Yahoo news today:
“France captin Patrick Vieira thinks the apologies should go both ways.
‘I think Zidane is waiting for Materazzi to apologize also for the insults he used,’ Vieira said.
Vieira, who is Materazzi’s teammate at Inter Milan, said he chatted with him before leaving to join the France squad. ‘He told me he is disappointed not to be here,’ Vieira said. “He’s a very cheerful guy, but he loves to wind people up. Sometimes you need to know when to stop.’”
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United States -
mark, I am really quite tired of people telling me that zidane was wrong and the punishment was right. Where do you see me saying that he should NOT have been punished? Where have you ever read any Zidane or France supporter saying that Zidane should NOT have been sent off? There is absolutely no disagreement with his punishment. In fact if he were still playing, I would’ve given him a 5 or 6 match ban, his pay docked for some weeks and a stronger type of community service.
But WHY is 90+ minutes of verbal and physical bullying and brutalizing considered absolutely acceptable and why do we expect our players never to react? France coach Aimee Jacquet said of Zidane’s stamping on the Saudi player in 1998 “It’s wrong of course, but if you go out on the pitch every single time — and they deliberately try to destroy you — because that’s what they’re doing — and you have no protection — and this happens *every single time* — is that not an explanation?” Meaning, the referee never acts to prevent you from being singled out. Zidane’s entire career was about fending off teams who singled him out and for the most part he never reacted. Both Pele and Maradona experienced the same thing — and they broke down a few times as well, using elbows and headbutts in reaction. Pele put a player in the hospital once. The only reason Zidane is singled out is that 2 billion people saw him and we have the internet to talk about it.
Why can’t you distinguish between an explanation and a justification? The police investigate motive to solve crimes to understand WHY. It is very relevant WHY Zidane did what he did at his last game, during the final of a world cup.
Posted from
United States -
No one has mentioned that Materazzi has a rich history in winding people up too. His feud with Shevchenko comes to mind..
And ‘give it up’, just follow your name and get out of here. If a personal insult and abuse of someone is all you can contribute, you had better find something else to do, silly boy.Posted from
Singapore -
Give it up you’re the loser. Any Canadian who talks like they know about soccer makes me laugh every time. Try actually qualifying for the World Cup before you critique one’s actions at the World Cup.
Posted from
United States -
well i think that marco mattirazi deserved that head butt for talking all that smack about him being a dirty terrorist.
Posted from
United States
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