In the wake of the furore over what Materazzi said to Zidane, there are conflicting reports of what was said. I read in the daily mail yesterday that they had a specialist lip reader that had been summoned in court cases before, and they deduced that Materazzi had called Zidane "nothing but the son of a terrorist whore" :angry: .

Do you think he deserved the headbutt in the heat of the moment now? :o

Nope, it's still inexcuable....if someone insults you there is no need to drop to their level...


However as his mother had been taken very ill that day, it does explain why he got so angry....

true, but it does become clear his motive for doing it!

I would take materazzi's medal off him if that is what he said though - Zidane is the only man who can confirm it I suppose...

err take the medal off the guy who scored the goal which ultimately set up the world cup victory? :unsure:

Anyways i can understand why ZZ did what he did but i can't excuse it.

This isn't a child's playground (though when you have players like rooney & ronaldo running around on the pitch i can understand how u can get confused.)

no need for the bold roflmao

I would take materazzi's medal off him if he said that - theoretically he surely could be arrested for that!

yeah i'm with the people who say it is inexcusable. Calling your mother a ' whore ' is horrendous and vicious, but its only words. By dropping to his level, he completely overshadowed his otherwise glorious career with one bizarre incident.

as is calling you a terrorist!

I don't think it's overshadowed his career - he has had 14 red cards in it, and it's not the first time he's nutted somebody.

I have no sympathy with Materazzi - not with his track record!

To be honest there is far too much of this type of crap going on in football and very little is done about it. These are professional sportsmen who are supposed to keep cool under pressure and behave approaprately at all times. However, I often notice that provaction is occurring before these incidents, and that needs to be dealt with too as that is hardly sportsmanship is it? This case however is a feel a bit different in some ways as the Italian was FAR too personal and I think he asked for it. Insultign his mother liek that was inexcusable especially if she had been taken ill, and to add to that this comment was RACIST. HAevnt; they bene going on about stamping otu racism in football fo rages? Liek David Backham's speech? In which case whilst they must do what they will with Zidane, they shoudl also take action against the Italian for this. At the time, the ref was 100% correct to send Zidane off, but now that we know more FIFA need to peanlise this Italian somehow and make an exampel fo him so trhat this vile language is not use don a pitch again.

At first I was dead against Zidane and thought it was a disgrace, but after hearign what happened I dont; blame him at all. The Italian know fully well what he was doing, nasty little #$%#$% and deserved a lot more than he got. He's lucky Zidane didn;t draw blood in the circumstances, cos if it were me he would not have been standing up if he had insulted my mother and my relgious and cultural background liek that. :angry:

FIFA need to sort this matter out asap as it is leavign a lto of confusion in my mind. Like they are saying Zidane was a disagrace on the one hand and yet awarding him player of the tournie (Ithink) on the other. And doign ntohing about this Italian jerk.

Wouldnt want to play football with SB! roflmao

I was at someone's party when this happened, i'd gone outside for a drink in a quiet part of extra time, only to here the cry "SAM, COME QUICK, ZIDANE'S JUST NUTTED AN ITALIAN!" roflmao

I was dead against to start with too, I couldn't believe he'd done it, but I also said immediately that Materazzi must have said something vile to get that reaction from Zidane in his last ever match!

Footballer need to grow a spine if they cant take a bit of sledging. If cricketers can take it why cant these "hard men"? Slegding is part and parcel of team sports - you don't see Brian lara coming down the ground to whack Glen McGrath round the face....

Yes but you don't see glenn mcgrath coming out with comments quite as offensive as Materazzi's mkk! Sorry mate, you can't defend materazzi on this if he said what is alleged!

Yes you do get tasteless sledging all the time.

e.g.
when chris cairns' sister died in a train accident the australian slips greeted his arrival at the crease with "choo choo".

when mcgrath's wife was diagnosed with cancer, McGrath said to sarwan "So what does' Brian Lara's d*ck taste like?" and Sarwan replied "I dunno. ask your wife"

Some disgraceful comments espetially the Cairns one but he never got violent. He's got some sense - i'm sure he was burning up with anger but he knew was just words

oh and im NOT defending materazzi. Its just i don't agree that you can excuse zidane. you seem to be defending him - i'd condemn BOTH.

He shouldn't have done what he did theoretically, no.

But IMO Materazzi is the bigger villain.

And mkk, one example in cricket doesn't mean all should follow - besides, being branded a terrorist is pretty extreme itself thanks!

He could have got arrested for that in life

and taking the piss out of someone who just died isn't extreme? Difference is he rose above it. And its happens quite often - its not one example.

He could have got arrested in real life for assault - in fact he would have been more likely to have in real life than if someone said what materazzi said....

I think what Zidane has done in the midst of all this is highlight something which does need sorting, remember the rhyme that is famously wrong mkk, 'sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me'?

Zidane doing that to scumbag Materazzi has highlighted the problem - and no matter how bad the comment mkk, Cricket is a far less energetic sport than Football, and far less likely to produce a reaction through tired minds!

Now you're just making excuses. Zidane acted like and idiotic child regardless of what was said - he should be reprimanded as should materazzi and they should both publicly apologise.

No i'm not making excuses - cricketers do not expend nearly as much energy as footballers in such a short space of time!

Both should apologise yes, and Zidane will i'm sure, but will Materazzi? I shan't hold my breath...

Do you remember Inter vs. Villareal mkk?

btw back to my earlier point... I would consider taking materazzi's medal from him if he's come out with rubbish like that... unless he has the guts to draw a line under it and apologise ;)

Zidane's medal is probably already in the bin! roflmao

everyone stopped jostling for the moral high ground on this yet? roflmao

Lol - nope i went to lunch! roflmao

I don't think we'll agree anyhow but lets just see what zidane says tonight. BTW we still dont know exactly what materazzi said!

"In response to news reports that he had called Zidane a "dirty terrorist" or "son of a terrorist whore" Materazzi stated: "It is absolutely not true, I did not call him a terrorist. I'm ignorant. I don't even know what the word means."

Materazzi later admitted that he had insulted Zidane, recounting the incident in an interview with Gazetta dello Sport, but repeated his insistance that the insult was not racist in nature: "I held his shirt for a few seconds only, then he turned to me and talked to me, jeering. He looked at me with huge arrogance and said: 'if you really want my shirt I'll give it to you afterwards'. I replied with an insult, that's true. It was one of those insults you're told dozens of times and that you often let fall on a pitch. I did not call him a terrorist. I am not a cultured person and I don't even know what an Islamist terrorist is. And for me, the mother is sacred. You know that"

Obviously he would say something like this if had said it or he could just be telling the truth.....

and btw i did see what materazzi did to sorin - busted his face open.

But this thread asks do you back zidane's actions? I've already said no.

My quote comes from two different British newspapers - I denuinely believe that if the press have got mixed up over two different insults, that probably means he said both things. I hope not!

Zidane is going to give a press conference at 7pm apparently, I wonder if the great man will just apologise for his own actions though and try and not say anything about what was said.

And of course, no-one wanted what had been a positive, vibrant world cup to end like this!

guess what I just found on youtube roflmao

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js0vOgjBfD8

No I'm safe dl, it's George you would not want to play with! He joined my works football team and hospitalised one fo my colleagues. still I hated th ebloke so there! roflmao

I twas an accident. george is known as "The Elbow". He plays it a bit like American football, charging down the pitch with a huge wingspan wiht his elbows out, and being 6ft and large shouldered running into him can turn nasty! H eis nto usually known for hospitalising peopel may I a add :D

Dont anger him then Sb, or he'll give you the ' Elbow ' roflmao

roflmao

I was victim of the Elbow once, got knocked sideways wen George was running down the garden! I think he should wear some kind of garment to restrict those lethal elbows! roflmao

Hmmm. Tough call. If I were in the same situation, with my mother seriously ill, and some idiot made a hateful and insulting comment like that about her, I might react similarly. I'm not sure that makes it right, but I'd be tempted to flatten the b*****d.

Too right! And I probably woudl just do it! :D

This was the point I was trying to make - it's ok mkk and SG hogging the moral and correct high ground, but emotionally I can totally understand Zidane doing just what he did.

He has recently given a press conference - hasn't gone into detail about what the Italian said, but it definitely involved his mother and sister, and he stood by himself!

He did however apologise to children watching the match! roflmao

You still didnt get what i ws trying to say. Your question was "Do you back Zidane's actions?". By saying yes you would thus be saying what he did was RIGHT (read what nick wrote again). I like him can understand why he did it and might have acted the same way also that still doesn't make it excusable. It was still the WRONG thing to do!

By what you say you seem to think that understanding something and excusing it are the same thing - to me they aren't. To me understanding something would be sympathising with his situation and realising what may have caused him to do it. Excusing it would be as a result of understanding why he did it - making him devoid of fault. (I don't mean to sound like a patronising knob - i cant help it :huh: )

It was wrong to do it in one sense - he is a role model, and you shouldn't go headbutting people.

But I bet many people would have done something to the bloke had they been in his shoes!

I know what you mean but that wasn't what you asked. I think its wrong no matter what but like i said i would have probably done the same thing (though i'd probably wouldnt use my head). That isnt because its "the right thing to do" but because people always do "wrong things"

Yeah, mkk, I haven't been strictly sticking to the question! roflmao

What would I have done? probably stand up to him - I couldn't get sent off for that, and if he reacted he'd be gone instead!

that would be the problem then!

I would have definitely have reacted - i have temper problems.. :blush:

I'd have imposed my size I reckon - just see whether he'd be so 'brave' to say it again to my face!

If he hit me he's off!

would you have really though - in the "heat of the moment"?

i snap over the slightest things anyway...

Well I keep calm, and remember I see things from a higher and stronger perspective.

Gentle giant me, but I can see how it would get someone with Zidane, who does lose it from time to time.

God knows what Cantona would have done to him! roflmao

Sam they should have sent my George on to run down that idiot Italian whatsit with his elbow! roflmao O rmy mum, she;d have sorted him!

roflmao roflmao roflmao

I hope they throw that Italians medal in the tiber! roflmao

with a bit of luck he might jump in after it! ;)