Until now, no team since the last Azzurri champions in 1982 had to endure the
stress and anguish of a soccer scandal. Rather than be disrupted by the current
probe ripping apart the national sport back home, the Italians survived.
Soccer fans celebrate Italy's World Cup 2006
triumph, outside the Colosseum in Rome July 9, 2006.
[Reuters] |
"If the scandal hadn't happened I think we wouldn't have won the World Cup,"
Gattuso said. "It has given us more strength."
Verdicts in the match-fixing trial that could relegate four teams, and 13 of
Italy's 23 players, to lower divisions are expected next week.
France underwent a renaissance of its own in the last month. The French,
racked by dissension, nearly went out in the first round for the second straight
World Cup, and then Zidane turned them around. They controlled the flow of play
Sunday, only to fail to finish through 120 minutes.
Their only goal, Zidane's penalty kick in the seventh minute, was the lone
score by an Italy opponent in seven games.
But the Italians put the ball into the net 12 minutes later on Materazzi's
header off a corner kick. And then they held on in a game marked by sloppiness
and maliciousness.
Rarely did Italy threaten over the final 75 minutes. But the Azzurri ignored
recent history, they lost a quarterfinal shootout to France in 1998, when Les
Bleus went on to their only championship.
Andrea Pirlo, Materazzi, Daniele De Rossi and Alessandro Del Piero all easily
beat France goalkeeper Fabien Barthez in the shootout. The difference was the
miss by rarely used David Trezeguet, which hit the crossbar on France's second
attempt.
When Grosso connected with his left foot, the sliver of Italian fans in the
opposite corner of Olympic Stadium finally could let out their breath, and
screams of victory.
"We had fear of the penalties," said Gattuso, aware that Italy lost the only
other final decided in a shootout, to Brazil in 1994. "Our history was not
great, so that was the fear."
On the trophy stand, amid hugs and slaps on the back, Materazzi placed a red,
white and green top hat on the World Cup Trophy. Captain Fabio Cannavaro then
held it high as cameras flashed everywhere. An impromptu Tarantella by the
players followed as silver confetti fluttered around them.
It was, by far, the prettiest sight of the night.
"I've won many championships," coach Marcello Lippi said, "but a joy so big I
have never felt."
With a 25-game unbeaten streak dating back nearly two years, the Italians
added this title to their championships in 1934, 1938 and '82, when another
match-fixing investigation plagued Serie A.
The hero then in Spain was striker Paolo Rossi, fresh off a two-year
suspension for his role in match-fixing. This time, there were a dozen stars and
a coach who seemed to make all the right moves.
