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推荐一篇国外媒体的文章
A question of sport
Roberto Gotta
Do you remember Byron Moreno? The Ecuadorian referee's name became synonymous with incompetence and wickedness two years ago, when his bizarre decisions in Italy's second round match against South Korea were taken by many as the real reason why the Azzurri had gone home.
Jonson celebrates his crucial goal to make it Sweden 2-2 Denmark.
They weren't, of course, but Moreno - however incompetent and vainly theatrical his performance had been - became the scapegoat and it was easy for the more demagogical and thin-skinned members of the public to forget how dull and disappointing Italy had been in winning only one of their first round matches, against - of all teams - Ecuador.
This time, it looks like fifty assorted Swedes and Danes have donned Moreno masks and rotund costumes and have stepped forward as culprits in the minds of those who have quick answers for every question - none of which involves any kind of personal responsibility.
A 2-2 draw between Denmark and Sweden would have sent Italy home and 2-2 the Swedes and Danes drew.
Did they do it on purpose so that Italy would go home? Well, no one knows, but what would you have done after a couple of days of verbal abuse, innuendo and openly worded suspicions from the Italian camp that the Scandinavian brothers ('come on, Sweden and Denmark are the same thing', the geographically challenged would say) would end their game in the same 2-2 draw that would see them both through?
I would have drawn 2-2 on purpose, with an own goal scored with my backside in the last second of stoppage time and thumbed my nose at my accusers. Never mind that Swedish goalkeeper Isaksson had to make a couple of great diving saves late in the game, one which a RAI reporter inaccurately described as 'a chance which was shot straight at the keeper'.
Obscure stats were brought forward in a subtle manner to further prove the 2-2 between Sweden and Denmark was a fix: 'Denmark have never drawn the third game of a first round group' was the astonishingly useless and non significant piece of information I heard during the match broadcast. Another was that 'Swedes and Danes have only drawn three times out of 98', as if this had any impact on the game in Porto.
There was also disappointment at a couple of decisions by the referee of the Bulgaria match, but many were wise enough to recognize that Italy's fate had mostly been of their own doing.
Going home with no defeats and five points from three matches may seem harsh, but as many commentators - the more honest ones - have noted, Italy has played seven matches in the last two big tournaments and have won just two, against Ecuador two years ago and against Bulgaria on Tuesday, and neither opponents were what one would define as high class.
The usual suspicions of Italy not being a player on the political front was also aroused by some, who pointed out that refereeing decisions always seem to go against the Azzurri in clutch moments. This theory again means that something other than sheer footballing talent is seen as crucial in getting results, and this is a particularly annoying thought, although recent developments (in the Serie A, of all places, with the gambling scandal) have apparently proved just that.
Italian federation president Franco Carraro, while trying to keep his composure and his words under control, disappointingly pointed at the fixture arrangements as a factor against Italy, as if playing the weakest team in the group in the last game wasn't what all teams wished for.
One beautiful hour of football against Sweden was not enough for Italy and there is no doubt now Trapattoni will not have his contract reviewed after next Friday's summit of the Federation.
His job had been on the line since the 2002 World Cup and he looked gone after Italy lost in Wales in the Euro qualifying match, but the FIGC held on to him and were hoping things would right themselves in Portugal when - it was hoped - the amount of talent at Trap's disposal would coalesce and lead the team to the trophy. It was not to be.
You'd expect a team fielding the likes of Totti, Vieri, Del Piero and Cassano to have little trouble scoring goals, but it was left to the latter to score twice and only because he replaced the suspended Totti, whose international epiphany could now be delayed until the 2006 World Cup - if he ever manages to duplicate his Serie A form on the international stage.
Whoever the coach is to take on the impossible job of managing Italy - Marcello Lippi currently the top candidate to look miserable on a sideline some day in June 2006 - will probably have to deal with an exodus of players. Cannavaro, Vieri, Del Piero, Zanetti and a couple of others may soon disappear from the Azzurri scene.
Italy's attempt to qualify for the next World Cup may be based on the talents of emerging players like Cassano and Parma centre-forward Alberto Gilardino, whose omission from the squad that travelled to Portugal was the single most debated matter before Euro 2004, at least among the reasonable ones (which excludes the popular push to include Roberto Baggio).
And - I take a cue from comments being made on Italian TV about the Sweden-Denmark game - please remember that, whatever the circumstances, a 2-2 draw is never, never an acceptable result, but rather a suspicious one, as... there have been so few of them in history. Why not abolish it then?
那段说意大利觉得这次是50个瑞典丹麦人传上莫里诺的衣服，带上他的面具集体做掉意大利人最讽刺了[ ] |
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发表于 2004-6-24 00:01:00
发表于 2004-6-24 00:04:00
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