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Mamma mia! Zoff takes pride in silver, looks to future
Posted: Monday July 03, 2000 10:57 AM
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) -- A proud Dino Zoff bid farewell Monday to a European Championship that returned Italy to the heights of international soccer, but left the soccer-crazy nation heartbroken as the title match against France slipped away in the final 30 seconds. "I'm sorry for the fans and the players," said the Italian coach, who spoke at an afternoon press conference at the Brussels airport before the team flight back to Milan. "Maybe I'm a bit more used to this feeling, and accepting a defeat like that." The 2-1 loss, which came after Italy gave up a tying goal with 30 seconds left, will linger some time in the gut of the nation. Beating world champion France would have given the Azzurri their first European Championship since 1968, and their first major title in 18 years But it was not to be. Sylvain Wiltord knocked in the tying score four minutes into injury time, and David Trezeguet knocked in the game-winning "golden goal" midway through overtime. Still Zoff said his team's performance throughout the tournament -- they defied widespread doubts to arrive just seconds from the title -- has done a lot for Italian soccer. "I'm proud of this team. ... We gave it our all," said the 58-year-old ex-goalkeeper, who captained Italy to its 1982 World Cup crown. "We showed that we were on the same level as a great French team." Zoff, who has another two years remaining on his contract with the national team, said he will soon begin preparing for World Cup qualifying matches, and will evaluate members of Italy's Under-21 team, which won this year's European title. "We need time for reflection, then we'll begin again," he said. The final press conference before the flight back to Milan and Rome also gave Zoff a chance to make some peace with an Italian press corps that questioned his every move even after the team began performing well. "I don't expect the press to root for us, I wouldn't even want that," he said. "It is your job to criticize and question. It creates more interest in the team and the democracy of interpretation." The Italian media was supportive after the loss, as was the Italian public. Perhaps the only dissenter was media magnate Silvio Berlusconi, who owns the Serie A club AC Milan. In comments sure to stir up a storm, he was quoted by the ANSA news agency as saying that Italy's coach Dino Zoff "acted like he was the last of amateurs." Berlusconi, the leader of the right-wing opposition and a former premier, complained that Zoff hadn't put a man on French playmaker Zinedine Zidane. "Even an amateur would have put a man on Zidane," he said, according to ANSA. "All it took was to understand this thing, and we would have won the game." "The problem is that either people have brains in their head, or they don't," Berlusconi concluded. Italians stunned but grateful after lost finalROME (AP) -- From the president of Italy to the fan in the streets, Italians expressed gratitude Monday to their soccer national team for coming so close to becoming Euro 2000 champions. But many supporters were bewildered over at a defeat that is proving to be one of the most upsetting in the country's soccer history. Italy lost 2-1 to France in the European championship final in Rotterdam on Sunday after "Les Bleus" tied in injury time with only some 30 seconds to go, and scored a "golden goal" in extra time. "Mockery," "Anger," "Illusion," "Shattered Dream," "Thanks Anyway," were some of the recurring words in papers articles and TV comments on the game. "What a Pity, Great Italy," was the headline of the Gazzetta dello Sport daily. "Italy had shown world champ France that it could outplay it," read the front-page editorial. "This second place, even if full of regrets, is still a masterpiece." Italy's head of state, President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, who was in the VIP section of the stadium Sunday night, made the Italian players "knights of the Republic," a symbolic honor. His unexpected visit to the team's dressing room after the game had sent some players in their underwear diving for cover. Going into the tournament, Italy and its coach Dino Zoff had been widely criticized by Italian commentators for prior performances, and few -- if anyone at all -- predicted Italy would go this far in the tournament. But as the team advanced, even the most persistent critics were defied. "We deserved the title," said Corriere dello Sport beneath a giant headline reading "What a Bad Luck." "Just when everything seemed so beautiful, fantastic, came the French goal, like a stab in the back," began the sports daily's account. Papers and fans indulged in the notion that Italy paid for all the good luck they had in the semifinal last week against the Netherlands, which Azzurri won on a shootout after playing down a man for 87 minutes and surviving two penalty shots in regulation. Said Ciampi's letter praising the team: "They have offered an example of collective commitment, moral solidity and tenacity, sparing no effort."
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