Just saw the Zidane interview as linked to on Julia's blog. (The wonders of cyberspace, making the world smaller - I'm in France, but only saw this interview - on French TV ! - thanks to a blogger in Australia...)
Ranks have closed here, and Zinedine is more of a hero than ever. If anything, his hotheadedness and willingness to get in trouble to defend the honor of his womenfolk only made him more likeable to the masses.
But, but - I'm not convinced.
If black footballers can go on playing when "fans" throw bananas on the pitch and make monkey noises (no, not during the World Cup, but it does happen) then he should damn well be able to continue playing even in the face of a pathetic "your mama" insult.
Never mind. Thanks to all the Bleus for a wonderful month of excitement and passion and this feeling of togetherness, of being connected in some way to the popular heart of the country. Rendez-vous en 2010 !
Yes, I keep thinking about this. My 2c:
ReplyDeleteI still don't believe what Zidane did was right. He is a professional and KNOW they would target him, especially at such a stage when they want him out, weaken the team and just go to penalties. He's from Marseille, where they're super sensitive about their family, so it was too easy. It's dirty play, and doesn't leave much confidence in the Azzuris if that's what they're relying on to win - but sledging is nothing new. So Zidane, with the weight of his last 10 minutes in the World Cup, in his career, should have been stronger. He should have walked out to a stranding ovation.
However I do *kind of* respect him for sticking to his guns and saying he won't apologise and basically that he'd do it all over again. I respect him for saying he'd prefer a punch to the face rather than that kind of verbal abuse.
It's amazing that this World Cup will be remembered for this incident, the Italian win so overshadowed.
And if anything, it's nice to see people realise that these stars aren't gods.