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Roller coaster Up-and-down Euro 2000 puts Italy, France in final
Posted: Saturday July 01, 2000 11:39 AM
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) -- In a tournament which has dipped and surged like a mad roller coaster, it will come down to Sunday's final how Euro 2000 will be remembered. English hooligans dragged the European championships down to the depth of despair during the first round, only to see soccer take the upper hand again with such spectacular teams as Portugal or such thrilling games as Spain vs. Yugoslavia. "Soccer is alive, and Euro 2000 was wonderful," said FIFA President Sepp Blatter. But just as a series of great quarterfinals set everybody up for a thrilling finish, in walked controversy and "catenaccio." Three days after a "golden goal" penalty sent the "golden generation" of Portugal packing in a 2-1 loss, the country is still in an uproar and many have vented their frustration at UEFA, accusing the European soccer federation of sinister machinations to get France through. While the world was still giddy about the Dutch offensive festival in a 6-1 thrashing of Yugoslavia, Italian coach Dino Zoff was already setting up his invincible defenders in front of brilliant goalie Francesco Toldo to blunt the Dutch edge in Thursday's semifinal. Two hours of scoreless play later and the host country was out of the tournament, again falling victim to its penalty shootout jinx. If there is more victorious, defensive catenaccio on Sunday, it might stain the tournament anywhere beyond the borders of Italy. It leaves much in the hands of one man -- Zinedine Zidane -- France's masterful playmaker whose sweets skills, vision and ice-cool execution have made him a symbol of France, much like two years ago when he led "Les Bleus" to the World Cup. If anyone can unlock the Italian defense, Zidane is the man. Give Zidane another two-goal final Sunday, like he had in the 3-0 World Cup win over Brazil, and surely he will overtake Michel Platini as the nation's supreme all-time soccer hero. Platini was already reveling in what the 30 matches so far have brought. "The tournament was great," he said. One long weekend, hooligans took over the tournament when England played Germany. Some 850 fans -- mostly English -- were detained, the historical heart of Brussels and a marketplace in Charleroi were thrashed and UEFA warned the English federation that a repeat of the violence would mean automatic exclusion. The English team however excluded itself with a 3-2 loss to Romania. What happened on the pitch has been encouraging. Teams with a more dour Anglo-Saxon way of playing -- England, Norway, Sweden, Denmark -- never stood a chance and were sent packing in the first round. Germany, lacking its virtues of organization and will power, was humiliated as defending champion. Meanwhile, new blood in the game was exhilarating. Tiny Slovenia, led by three-goal Zlatko Zahovic, seemingly had its former compatriots from Yugoslavia by the throat leading 3-0 with a half hour to go. Yet the adrenaline rush went to their head and the Slovenians lost all composure before the match settled in a 3-3 draw. Yugoslav substitute Savo Milosevic became the first comeback hero of Euro 2000. There were more to come. Split asunder by David Beckham crosses and two English goals in the first 18 minutes of its opening match, no one would have given a cent for Portugal to survive. Luis Figo had other ideas and his 30-meter blast past David Seaman uncorked the sparkle of the team and after beating England 3-2, Portugal remained unbeaten until "golden goal" overtime in the semifinal. Spain's run in the championship was far less smooth, and even less happy in the end. Only the Spanish word "angustia" -- anguish with more pain thrown in -- came close to an even worse reality. All omens said this was finally going to be Spain's year -- three of four Spanish teams in the Champions League final, a great qualifying run and Raul, Europe's brightest rising star. First goalie Paco Molina blunders in a 1-0 loss to Norway, and Spain is faced with a must-win game against Yugoslavia. In the most spectacular national team match in years in Europe, Spain is 3-2 down in injury time needed two goals to survive. Impossible? From somewhere, a penalty materializes and Alfonso Perez shots the unlikeliest of victories with a fine volley. On to France in quarterfinals. Again Spain trails late in the match and in the penultimate minute, it again gets a penalty. Hopes rise again only for Raul to send the penalty sky-high over. Don't talk about penalties to the Dutch. The co-hosts were having a perfect tournament before sport kicks undid them. They emerged with a perfect three-for-three record from the Group of Death, including a win over France. Spirits went soaring sky-high when Patrick Kluivert scored three goals in a 6-1 romp over Yugoslavia in the quarterfinals. Everyone was poised for the perfect final between France and the Netherlands. But Italy and its fearsome defensive wall ruled differently. But what undid the Dutch most was its penalty futility. Out of a half dozen penalties, including two in regulation time, it scored just one. It turned the Italians into a team of destiny. Much maligned before arriving, the Azzurri just kept eking out win after win and its defense proved the stuff of champions. Even if it was ugly to watch most of the time, it brought smiles on the faces of all Italian fans. Zoff shrugged off the criticism. "I have to play with the players I have," he said.
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