Nevertheless, we can all relive that moment and maybe punish Materazzi ourselves playing the well done flash game.

Play the Zidane Head Butt game.

In a game that will be remembered for its fierce pace and the determination of the two teams to come out the winner, the Italians needed 118 minutes to open the score on a fabulous goal by Grosso. Moments later and as a desperate German team was pushing forward for the equalizer, Del Piero struck once more to seal the victory and send his team to the final. Wild celebrations broke out everywhere in Italy after the game ended, easing some of the pain induced by the match-fixing scandal that is unraveling in Italian courts. At the same time, German fans felt endless sorrow for their team’s loss but they found the courage to express their support for Klinsmann and his young team for a great showing in their World Cup.

France and Portugal met the next day to decide who will be challenging Italy for the trophy. Portugal entered the game with lots of energy and they dominated for the first few minutes. France eventually elevated their game and they begun to threaten managing a goal in the dying minutes of the first half. Henry was fouled inside the box after displaying his incredible dribbling skills and Zidane had no difficulty converting the penalty kick. In fact, Zidane was once again the beginning and the end for the French team continuing his inspired play since their tilt versus Brazil. In the second half, Portugal pressed for the equalizer while France seemed content to just defend their one goal lead and so the rhythm of the game was much less exciting. In the end, the French defense, lead by “man of the match” Lilian Thuram, prevailed and they will now start preparing for the last game of the competition against the high flying Italians. If France wins the trophy, it will be the perfect ending for Zidane’s magnificent football career as his has previously announced that he will be retiring at the end of the this World Cup.

It is expected that 1.5 billion people worldwide are going to be watching. This will most certainly affect global financial patterns. But most importantly, there is going to be a lot of pissed off wives out there. And how can anyone convince these innocent creatures to watch football? Do you have any idea how ugly most of the players really are? If not, just venture over to http://www.uglyfootballers.com -Warning: visiting this site will most certainly result in you wanting to rip your eyes out and feed them to the dogs.

If you still have your vision, the tournament’s opening game was a pleasure to watch. The German machine thrashed what is believed to be one of the weakest teams in the tournament, Costa Rica. But hey, the boys from Costa Rica sure gave them a scare. I was cheering for these underdogs and I will be supporting all the underdogs of the tournament. Go Trinidad and Tobago, Togo, Australia, Paraguay, Angola and so forth.

Unfortunately, neither of the two teams performed according to expectations. France, meeting a much younger Swiss side, managed to put everyone to sleep with its very unimaginative play. The Tricolor failed for their 4th consecutive World Cup appearance to score a single goal. Tierry Henry, the premiership’s top scorer, could not deliver in several key moments of the game. Even Zidane, in his last appearance in this tournamet, was disappointing. The final result, a 0-0 tie, is a clear reflection of the low quality of football played by both teams. France will have to do much better or they will not go very far in this competition.

Brazil, on the other hand, managed to squeeze a win past a hard working Croatia team. Brazil started the game in control and managed to finish the half ahead by a goal. Kaka was the goal scorer late in the half with a beautiful shot from the top of the box. Unfortunately, Brazil practically fell asleep in the second half allowing a more upbeat Croatian side to create some chances and hopes of getting a positive result out of this meeting. The Brazilians managed to hold on to their lead until the end and now have the upper hand in terms of winning their group. Ronaldo has been in the spotlight recently because of his weight and everyone was expecting a good performance from him to quell any doubts. He performed poorly and eventually he was substituted in the 69th minute. Selecao will have to do better to satisfy their fans.

The Swiss are very close to the next round after an easy win over Togo. Without playing fantastic football but being clearly the better team, Switzerland took the 3 points and it now holds a commanding lead in Group G over rivals France. Frei and Barnetta scored for the winners with goals split between the two halves. Togo could certainly complain about a poor decision by the referee who denied them a penalty kick in the first half when they were still down by only one goal. One can only speculate that they final result could have been different had Togo been allowed the penalty kick and had equalized the Swiss.

In Group H action, Ukraine shook off their previous thrashing by Spain and returned the favour dominating a poor Saudi Arabian side, 4-0. The result brings Oleg Blokhin’s team a step closer to the next round having one game left against contender Tunisia. In an exciting game, Spain, after finding themselves falling behind on a Mnari goal, bounced back to defeat the Africans with a commanding 3-1 score. Raoul, a second half substitute, scored in the 71st minute to even the score and Torres netted two more in the 76th and 90th minutes to give Spain top place in their group. Finally, Torres with his two goals today became the tournament’s top goal scorer over Crespo, Delgado and a few others that have two goals each.

In the second game of the same group, Saudi Arabia met Tunisia in what turned out to be a very dramatic affair. The Saudi Arabians went to the dressing room at half time trailing 1-0. However, they managed a comeback in the second half going ahead 2-1 with some clinical finishing by Sami Al Jaber. Tunisia tied the game in injury time, 92nd minute, on a counter attack and powerful header by Radhi Jaidi. At this point second place in this group is open to anyone of Ukraine, Saudi Arabia or Tunisia although the former are expected to win it if they manage to shake off their earlier thrashing by Spain.

The day ended with another exciting game, the hosts Germany versus Poland. The former wanted a victory to prove that their win five days ago was not a fluke and at the same time come very close to moving on to the next round. Poland on the other hand wanted to make up for a much unexpected loss to Ecuador and of course retain their hopes for a stay in the competition. Both teams did not disappoint. The game had a fast pace since the beginning and although Germany had more possession and chances to open the score, Poland was also creating opportunities. The first half ended with the two teams deadlocked at 0-0. The second half was all Germany who tried desperately to score a goal while Poland kept a clean sheet on an excellent performance by their goalkeeper, Artur Boruc. Finally, Oliver Neuville put one in at the 91st minute to give Germany the win and first place in their group. Poland on the other hand will be heading home early.

Ghana surprised the world with a comfortable victory over the Czech Republic earning its first 3 points in the competition and increasing its hopes for a second round breadth. Gyan opened the score for the African nation in just over one minute into the game. Missing two strikers to injuries, the Czech team was unable to respond in a game that continued at a breath taking pace. The Europeans found themselves in a very difficult position having a player ejected at the 65th minute. Ghana used their speed and continued to press forward eventually increasing their lead in the 82nd minute. Muntari found himself in a good position inside the box and simply executed a helpless Czech goalkeeper. The final whistle gives the Africans both their first ever win in the tournament as well as much hope for a spot in the next round considering that they meet the USA in their last game while the Czechs have to play Italy.

The third match of the day saw Italy play to a draw with an upbeat USA team. In fact, the Americans playing with 9 men since the 47th minute dominated creating a myriad of quality chances but failing to earn a win. Alberto Gilardino netted the game’s first goal in the 22nd minute with a perfectly executed diving header. The Americans continued to attack and scored the equalizer 5 minutes later when Reyna Claudio crossed the ball into the box and Christian Zaccardo, in his attempt to clear it, scored an own goal. The second half started with Pope being ejected after receiving his second yellow card for a hard tackle. The game continued at a fierce pace until the very end with Italy failing to convert any of multiple chances. Keller rightfully deserved the “man of the match” award for his excellent performance in the entirety of the game but especially in the dying minutes. The final result leaves the two qualifying spots open to any of the four teams in Group E which should make June 22nd a very interesting day.

Germany playing at home should move on over Sweden without much difficulty assuming that the German team shows up to play. Argentina and Mexico will meet once again in Germany (after their Confederations Cup match last year) and I expect that Argentina will prevail. There is little doubt that Diego’s old team is a quality side, especially after their extraordinary performance in the first stage of the tournament.

An Italian side with an improved game compared to the beginning of the competition should also manage to get by newcomers Australia. It is a match, however, that I expect it to be low scoring with several players from both sides cautioned. Ukraine and Switzerland will both battle hard for the win when they meet in Cologne. Both teams have not been able to win against a strong opponent since Ukraine lost to Spain and Switzerland tied with France. I expect that Ukraine will succeed in this contest in a low scoring affair but I believe that the quarter finals is the furthest they will go; the same holds for Switzerland if they happen to win on June 26th.

Ecuador could become the biggest surprise of the tournament defeating England. Having lost Owen to a knee injury and Rooney just coming back from a foot injury, England will be hard pressed to score many goals against a very hopeful South American team. Overpowering favorites Poland and Costa Rica, Ecuador’s players have already shown that they can win against first-rate teams. Portugal and the Netherlands will most likely play a high scoring match with the Dutch prevailing, the wining goal coming late in the game.

With Ronaldo having found his scoring touch against Japan and with an abundance of talent in all positions, Brazil should be able to overcome Ghana and advance to the quarter finals. In Hanover, Spain will meet France for the last game of this stage. An aged and unimaginative French side is not likely to advance past a high scoring and exciting Spain. On June 27th is expected to be Zidane’s last appearance in a football game. We are going to be very sad to see this legend walk off the field for the last time.

This game also marked the very last one for France’s Zinadine Zidane, indisputably one of the game’s greatest players. In fact, it was Zidane who opened the score in the 6th minute with a perfectly executed penalty kick only he could master with such comfort.

The Azzurri did not give up and scored the equalizer just 13 minutes later when Materazzi literally flew over the French defense to win a decisive header and knock the ball into the net.

In the second half, a very determined French side took control but could not get the go ahead goal. Herny displayed his ball handling skills when he dribbled past 3 defenders only to shoot the ball on the outside of Bartez’s net. Italy eventually balanced the game and came close to taking the lead on a Toni header that hit the crossbar. Since neither team was able to beat the two goalkeepers, the game went to extra time.

Extra time had two moments that football fans will remember for a long time. First, in the 104th minute, Zidane’s powerful header was knocked out of the park by a flying Buffon robbing the megastar of the chance to win this match for France. No more than 7 minutes later, Zidane walked off the field and into the dressing room after seeing the red card for hitting Materazzi off the ball. This was definitely not the way that neither Zidane nor his fans wanted him to end his career but the sold out crowd in Berlin’s Olympiastadion cheered him on as he walked off the field.

The Italian team was not able to capitalize on the one man advantage for the remaining of the game and so the final was decided on penalty kicks. The Azzurri scored in all 5 of their chances while Trezeguet’s kick hitting the crossbar sealed the victory for Lippi’s team. So, Italy won its fourth world cup title, 24 years after last winning it in Spain.

This game also marked the very last one for France’s Zinadine Zidane, indisputably one of the game’s greatest players. In fact, it was Zidane who opened the score in the 6th minute with a perfectly executed penalty kick only he could master with such comfort.

The Azzurri did not give up and scored the equalizer just 13 minutes later when Materazzi literally flew over the French defense to win a decisive header and knock the ball into the net.

In the second half, a very determined French side took control but could not get the go ahead goal. Herny displayed his ball handling skills when he dribbled past 3 defenders only to shoot the ball on the outside of Bartez’s net. Italy eventually balanced the game and came close to taking the lead on a Toni header that hit the crossbar. Since neither team was able to beat the two goalkeepers, the game went to extra time.

Extra time had two moments that football fans will remember for a long time. First, in the 104th minute, Zidane’s powerful header was knocked out of the park by a flying Buffon robbing the megastar of the chance to win this match for France. No more than 7 minutes later, Zidane walked off the field and into the dressing room after seeing the red card for hitting Materazzi off the ball. This was definitely not the way that neither Zidane nor his fans wanted him to end his career but the sold out crowd in Berlin’s Olympiastadion cheered him on as he walked off the field.

The Italian team was not able to capitalize on the one man advantage for the remaining of the game and so the final was decided on penalty kicks. The Azzurri scored in all 5 of their chances while Trezeguet’s kick hitting the crossbar sealed the victory for Lippi’s team. So, Italy won its fourth world cup title, 24 years after last winning it in Spain.