Le Coup de Boule: Zidane to submit statement to FIFA

FIFA has opened its investigation into affaire le coup de boule. Zidane has been asked to submit a written statement by the 18th of July to FIFA and a copy given to Materazzi for his response. Meanwhile, Zidane through his press statements expressing contrition over the incident has been hailed by the French media. Most of FRance has forgiven Zizou and Jacques Chirac has seen an uptick in his favorability ratings with his support of Zizou.
Even his harshest critics, the sports daily L’Equipe that had lashed out at Zizou asking how he could explain his act to the millions of children all over the world, turned conciliatory in their coverage.

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10 comments on “Le Coup de Boule: Zidane to submit statement to FIFA
  1. I find the response to this Zidane incident laughable. First of all, I don’t care what Materazzi said to Zidane, it doesn’t justify Zidane’s actions. Rather than accept the blame and admit the fact that he completely lost his mind, Zidane turns around and blames Materazzi for what happened. What a dick! What ever happened to sticks and stones? Didn’t Zidane learn that in kindergarten? Secondly, all the French people and the media turn the other cheek and embrace their hero simply because he took them to the final. It’s disgusting when these athletes are pardoned for their abhorant behavior because they can kick a soccer ball or hit a baseball. Zidane is completely at fault. Period. He disgraced himself and his country. End of story. I’m shocked that FIFA gives a rats ass what Materazzi said. Zidane should be stripped of the golden ball and be remembered for this embarrasing act that has tarnished a great player’s great career. He should be used as an example to deter others from even thinking about doing the same kind of thing. You will never stop players from talking trash. it’s up to the individuals to show some maturity and let their play do the talking.

  2. “I find the response to this Zidane incident laughable. First of all, I don’t care what Materazzi said to Zidane, it doesn’t justify Zidane’s actions. Rather than accept the blame and admit the fact that he completely lost his mind, Zidane turns around and blames Materazzi for what happened.”
    And I find all this dime-a-dozen armchair sanctimonious holier than thou sermonizing from pundits and fans all over the blogosphere and media utterly boring and cheap, esp. from people who know almost nothing about Zidane and his career nor international football. I’m fed up to here with all these cheap moralizing blog posters and pundits huffing and puffing their boring self-righteousness. Take it to a church pulpit.
    Zidane has accepted responsibility for doing something “unpardonable” (a word he used several times), apologized several times and not once complained about his punishment. People are calling him a “whiner” when he hasn’t behaved like a “whiner” in the least. Most players on the pitch caught in such an act would spend 10 minutes claiming innocence, arguing with the referee, wasting time. Instead, he took off his armband even before the referee looked like he was going to card him, walked off the pitch silently and didn’t come back to accept his medal because he said he didn’t deserve any medals. In his interview he offered no excuses or justifications (meaning, he never said he was “morally right” to do what he did) for his attack on Materazzi, he offered only explanations and said that he was provoked. No one is excusing the headbutt, least of all Zidane. He offered an explanation and feels that Materazzi was clearly in the wrong for what he did as well.
    I agree, and many others do as well, not just Zidane’s fellow countrymen and women. It is a violation of FIFA rules to verbally abuse fellow players on the pitch. What sort of lowlife starts hurling obscene personal abuse repeatedly toward the captain of the opposing team during the final of a World Cup? The kind of player who acts like this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=fGJ4grSnN38&search=materazzi
    Materazzi is also the type of lowlife who refused to support his fellow player (a black man) back in Italy when that player finally had had enough of the vicious racist taunts from organized racist fan groups in the stands. Marc Doro picked up the ball during one match (dominated by incredibly loud organized racist abuse, monkey noises and the like) and walked off the pitch with it. Several teammates supported his action but Materazzi said he was just trying to draw attention to himself. He see nothing wrong at all with his fellow teammates suffering racist abuse from fans.
    Zidane had been fouled, kicked, grabbed and insulted throughout the match (several Italian players kept calling him “baldie” from the start of the game — this was reported in the Italian press yesterday). He saw his fellow players Vieira and Henry leave the pitch wounded and exhausted. The Italian team tried doing the same to Zidane — he was injured and still in pain when he refused to leave the match. In pain, exhausted, frustrated, carrying the leadership of his team without two crucial players, and in come this jerk hurling obscene personal abuse repeatedly at him. Yes, he cracked, he lost control. He gave into Materazzi’s abuse. He should’ve waited until after the match to beat the crap out of the dungheap.
    But absolutely NONE of this will ever ever remove Zidane from the roster of one of the greatest football players in history, period. (Anyone here remember how the great Pele viciously elbowed two players, sending one to the hospital? Or the great Maradona’s drug use?) And none of the Italian players on that pitch on Sunday can ever touch even half of his artistry and genius.
    To watching Zidane play (even when he was subpar) was to understand that some human beings are capable of near-supernatural beauty and creativity with their bodies and their minds in one unified whole. He was and is an extraordinary man and player who crashed and fell in one insane moment. Years from now no one will remember Materazzi.

  3. i love zidane and that rascist bastard materazzi should have never said that. i support him all the way for what he did.

  4. i love zidane and that rascist bastard materazzi should have never said that. i support him all the way for what he did.

  5. Gear up for grub with a tripleheader of pigskin, including a meeting of brothers in Dallas. Everybody knows it’s been a rough year for her, but find out who else had issues

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