 WHAT a way to go. We wanted one more golden moment from the golden boy of the golden generation. Well we got one from Zinedine Zidane, and one more moment of madness into the bargain. The man who has delighted fans from every country for the last decade certainly made sure the last match of his career, in Berlin's magnificent Olympic Stadium, will never be forgotten. Zidane's breathtaking skill and talent for the unexpected were in evidence for as long as he was on the pitch, 110 minutes to be exact. But there has always been a bit of the Marseille streetfighter in Zidane. Quite what Italy's former Everton defender Marco Materazzi said to him as they walked back to the centre circle may never be known, but whatever it was, something inside Zidane snapped. As the giant defender loomed over him, Zidane delivered a headbutt into his chest, and Materazzi went down like a felled tree. Reputations matters not to referee Horacio Elizondo - David Beckham and Wayne Rooney are among those in his red-card book - and the best player of his era stalked off the pitch looking moody, mean but not so magnificent. What should not be forgotten among all the drama around Zidane is that it was Italy who had the outstanding player of this World Cup, and thus it seems right that they should had triumphed. That man was Fabio Cannavaro, the spring-heeled captain and centre-back who, once more, was utterly awesome. Every player in that Italian team should have shaken his hand and said: 'Thanks for winning us the World Cup'. Indeed, they probably did. Would Zidane have made the difference had his control not deserted him? It meant France were denied Zidane's services for the penalty shoot-out, but he had already written his name indelibly into the annals of this final from the spot. Zidane had chipped the best goalkeeper in the world and the ball went in off the bar for the opener - an audacious piece of showmanship, before Materazzi, who had given the penalty away, equalised with a header from Andrea Pirlo's corner. And an absorbing contest ebbed and flowed until Zidane's demise, a wretched if spectacular end, and when you saw Materazzi walking up to take Italy's second penalty the writing was already on the wall for France. David Trezeguet, architect of Italy's downfall in the final of Euro 2000, missed and Fabio Grosso, hero of the semi-final against Germany, struck the winning kick before embarking on a wild sprint the length of the pitch, a picture of pure ecstasy. Zidane, at least, did not have to watch. | 
England v Paraguay