Italy defeated France yesterday 5-3 in a penalty kick showdown to win the glorious World Cup. Their victory though will forever have two black clouds hanging over it. The odd thing about it is I’m not sure which one will be the bigger one years down the road.
The first black cloud is the HUGE scandal going on with Italian club teams and the accusations of paying off referees. There was eight players in the World Cup final who are on these accused Italian club teams. Juventus is a powerhouse in club soccer and literally could be cast to the minor leagues of soccer if found guilty.
The second one is the red card given to French star Zinedine Zidane. He came out of retirement at the request of the French prime minister to assist “Les Bleus” at World Cup 2006. This is the same man who lead the French to the World Cup in 98′ in a 3-0 win over Brazil. “Zizou” is the quintessential star with class, but he flipped his lid yesterday at an inexcusable time. Zidane ended up headbutting an Italian player and was kicked out of the match with ten minutes left in overtime.
I know you would never give up such an honor, but I’m sure Italy would have preferred to win in a simpler manner.