Desire Avenue

sound world wrote:I'm pissed that I missed (I'm a poet and I don't know it ) the Germany-Italy match (I was out gigging) which was evidently a classic in which Italy played very well (which they haven't really been doing up till now).TV here since dominated by Wimbo so still haven't seen highlights even.

http://www.corriere.it/Speciali/Extra/2 ... ache.shtml
Click on video and there are several chronicles of the last three minutes from various foreign countries. Except for Germany, of course, they're even more enthousiast than the Italian chronicle.
And about Germans, the German press has so much vilified and insulted us with the usual stereotypes and clich?s that I guess no Italian cared for German players sadness. German press doesn't speak for all German people, of course, but when they start insulting even before we play against Ukraine and not only our players but us as people, I guess they only write what people want to read.

Don't worry Witchy I have a sneaking feeling Italy might do it...
Now where are all our French boys? Alex,I know you're not into football but it's time to get behind your lads!
Elfy?
Franck? (haven't seen Franck here for a while... )

Paola thanks for those links! Two classy goals! Which one is the Italian commentary?
(I remember in 1990 when Baggio scored a fantastic goal,the Italian commentary went something like
'Baggio...Baaaaaa ggg iiiii ooooo.........BAAA GGGGIIIII OOOOO.....BAAAAAAAAAAA GGGGGGGIIIIIIIOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! GOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Which summed it up very nicely

puce wrote:
And about Germans, the German press has so much vilified and insulted us with the usual stereotypes and clich?s that I guess no Italian cared for German players sadness.

There was a lot of indignation in England too about insults in the German press toward the Beckhams, but I suspect if you examined the press of most countries involved in the tournament you'd find them all sniping and sneering about each other.

One of our English papers, I'm sure the UK folks here will know the one I mean, has been particularly guilty of stirring up xenophobic nonsense through the tournament.

I think the press is the same wherever you go. I'm a great believer that you can only really guage the character of a nation by the best of its people, because rubbish is the same the world over.

ITALIA!!!

Not a classic,eh.And always a shame when a big match reduces to penalties.But Italy deserved it (just) IMHO.
Ignominious end for Zidane.But....that's football;which is why it doesn't figure among my favourite sports really.Too much nastiness on and off the pitch,and games too often decided by small bits of fortune-or a lottery (penalties).
For all the money that goes in and out of it,they could have saved loads by just getting all the teams to fire penalties at each other a month ago and have done with it.
Maybe even the Saudis or Ghana might have won it.
Anyway gli Azzurri looked like they were really enjoying themselves after the game.Nothing beats a good old celebration.France had theirs in '98 and Italy have been so unlucky in two or three recent World Cups.They should have won in 1990.
So ciao bella Italia!!

Well done Italy!! [akiss]

So pleased they won, and yes they deserved it, I think. They took their penalties brilliantly. I do feel so sorry for the French guy who missed though, such a nightmare situation to be in. I hope he doesn't get put through the mill when they get back to France.

I don't even know what to say about the Zidane incident. What a sad end to a fantastic career. I can't imagine what must have been said to provoke such a violent reaction. No doubt we'll hear more about that in due course.

I'd give anything to be in Rome tonight.

Zidane 's behaviour was very stupid and i'm ashamed by this. He's a role model here and such violence is not allowed !
As I mentionend before I don't care at all about football so I have no special feelings about tonight, but I'm really enjoying the fact that Am?lie Mauresmo won the tennis cup at Wimbledon ! She deserves more credits than Zidane, the shameful violent football player.

I'm here for a minute, hi everyone
Hell yeah, I'm not into football at all either, not much sound yesterday evening after the results, so I guessed France lost...
Well, got nothing more to say about it, I really don't care.

Ciao and take care, all of you.

PS : next week, I play in a street festival near my home called Chalon dans la rue and the current week is gonna be rehearsal for me...

Well,the world cup is over for another four years ( can't they make it 10? ) .....and I mangaged to get through the last fortnight with only having to endure half a match on telly.

In fact,as of now ( 1pm,Monday),I still don't know who won.

According to that xenophobic UK newspaper I mentioned above, Materazzi allegedly called Zidane a 'son of a terrorist whore'. Given that Zidane is of Algerian extraction, and his mother had been taken into hospital a few days before, I'm only surprised he didn't aim his headbutt a bit higher.

According to the Daily Quality (which I found on a train) he also ,in true Italian fashion,cast doubt upon the purity and morals of Zizi's sister.Zidane has played footy in Italy for ages,surely he gets used to such stuff.
Whatever was said,it was a damn fool thing to retaliate like that.

Of course, but it makes it slightly less puzzling.

Well, all suggestions come from people who don't speak Italian.
Frenchmen can't really accept to have lost. 61% of people justifies Zidane who is now treated like a hero because he defended his honour (even if people don't know at all what Materazzi said).
It's really a shame what's happening here, even newspapers like Lib?ration and Le Monde give place in their readers comments to racism against Italians.
Zidane was not new to this kind of acts, he did the same with a German player, but nobody agressed that player for his provocation like Materazzi is being agressed now. He's the usual bad and dirty Italian against the poor victim Zidane. I'm really disgusted.
When Totti spit on a Danish player in the last European championship, nobody in Italy justified him, he was rightly crucified and nobody investigated about the Danish provocation, 'cause it wasn't the point. Totti demanded pardon to the team, to Italy and to the player. After three days Zidane hasn't done it yet.

It's a great pity the whole thing is being reduced to these nationalistic paramaters, Paola - totally agree with you on that. The fact is this was a personal incident between two individuals, but as ever, it's much easier to cop out of personal responsibility and make it all about something else.

I don't condone Zidane's impulsive reaction at all, but I absolutely understand it. A man who makes those sorts of neanderthal remarks about women in whatever context is making a morally repugnant choice to do so, it shouldn't be tolerated as somehow 'normal' or 'inevitable' behaviour. It's just as unnecessary as the violence with which it was met, but where the reaction is understandable, the provocation is not, as far as I can see. In that respect, if Zidane is expected to apologise for his actions, Materazzi should most certainly apologise for his, too.

I bet you he'll have a bloody good think about it before he decides to shoot his mouth off about mothers and sisters again.