HAMBURG, Germany - Anyone battling a mid-life crisis only needs to watch the
World Cup. Plenty of people have been written off as washed up, only to play as
if still in their prime. Zidane, Figo, Beckham — the list goes on. At the same
time, many of those so-called prodigies are already watching the games on
television.
Ronaldo was not only supposed to be too old and creaky at 29, even Brazil's
president openly worried the once "Phenomenal One" was too fat and flabby for
World Cup duty. Yet here the Real Madrid striker is, leading the charge of those
over-the-hill veterans. Turns out they are suddenly at the top of their game,
looking down on all those young challengers.
Ronaldo scored three goals in his last two matches to become the World Cup's
most prolific striker with 15 goals in three World Cups.
"He is again on top of every player in the world," Brazil coach Carlos
Alberto Parreira said.
Zinedine Zidane is close behind. The 34 year old is fighting off retirement
with every game he plays for France, vowing to end his competitive career after
the World Cup. True soccer fans can only hope he reaches the final so his skills
will be on display for three more games.
Zidane already retired from national team competition once, but decided to
give it a final go when it was evident his country was struggling without him in
qualifying. He didn't have a good first round, and soon enough the criticism
about age and immobility popped up. Yet he silenced everybody by setting up the
decider, then scoring a spectacular goal to seal a 3-1 win over Spain.
He will now face Ronaldo and Brazil in the quarters.
"You know what Zizou's influence can be. We're happy for him that he's 34 and
in the 90th minute he still had the legs to score," coach Raymond Domenech said.
More impressive is that Ronaldo and Zidane are forwards, a position that
depends on leg speed and the sudden burst of energy — two qualities that are all
too often the first casualties of decline. On top of that, the physical quality
and endurance of defenders has taken a major leap forward over the past decade,
forcing them to stay even with, or outpace, their pursuers.
Even if the speed is no longer there, other qualities can still prevail.
David Beckham was knocked as too old, too slow. At 31, he may be a reduced
force, but he is still the best at free kicks.
When his younger teammates wilted in the afternoon heat against a mediocre
Ecuador team, England once again turned to Beckham. With a masterful free kick,
he put England in the quarterfinals.
"He'd been getting hammered in the papers and in the media by various
different people, and he scores a goal. That's his way of answering back,"
defender Rio Ferdinand said.
Added midfielder Steven Gerrard, "The criticism he got before the game helped
us because he went out with a point to prove."
Now Beckham will face another of the game's senior citizens when England
plays Portugal on Saturday.
At 33, Luis Figo's lightning speed has dulled. Some critics claimed they no
longer knew if they saw him live on television or in slo-mo. But Portugal
wouldn't be making its first appearance in the quarterfinals since 1966 if not
for his dazzling play against the Netherlands.
The Dutch had pair of 22-year-old wingers in Arjen Robben and Robin van
Persie, but neither were any match for the elder Figo.
"Figo is a charismatic figure. He's a tremendously important player for us,"
midfielder Francisco Costinha said.
Italy could say the same about captain Fabio Cannavaro. The 32 year old has
been one of Italy's top players so far, with the defense allowing only one goal
— and an own goal, at that. Cannavaro is playing in his third World Cup, and his
97 caps are the most on Italy's roster.
What keeps him going?
"Eating, sleeping and sex," he said. "Sex, when you need it, definitely
helps. Eating well is extremely important, it gives you the fuel to keep going.
I try to eat little but a bit of everything. And sleeping has its part, too."
