Posted on 07/11/2006 10:25:59 AM PDT by Abathar
MILAN, Italy -- Marco Materazzi acknowledged he insulted Zinedine Zidane before the French captain head-butted him in the World Cup final, but repeated his denial that he called Zidane a "terrorist."
"I did insult him, it's true," Materazzi said in Tuesday's Gazzetta dello Sport. "But I categorically did not call him a terrorist. I'm not cultured and I don't even know what an Islamic terrorist is."
A Paris-based anti-racism group issued a statement Monday saying Materazzi had called Zidane, whose parents emigrated to France from Algeria, a "dirty terrorist."
Zidane and Materazzi exchanged words in extra-time of Sunday's final in Berlin. Seconds later, Zidane lowered his head and rammed Materazzi in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Zidane was ejected from the match.
"I held his shirt for a few seconds only, then he turned round and spoke to me, sneering," the Italian defender told the newspaper. "He looked me up and down, arrogantly and said: 'If you really want my shirt, I'll give it to you afterwards."'
The 32-year-old Inter Milan player did not elaborate on exactly what he said to Zidane.
"It was one of those insults you're told tens of times and that always fly around the pitch," he said.
Also Tuesday, Algeria's president defended Zidane and said soccer fans shouldn't condemn the French star.
"We are just human beings, our duty is not to judge, our duty is to understand," Abdelaziz Bouteflika said in London after meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
LOL Excuse of the year!
Yikes. Pegged the BS meter with that one.
Sticks & Stones... LOL
For someone who took the word "terrorist" as such an insult - he sure did act like one...
Muslim. Blows-up women and children. Wants to kill all the world's Jews. Believes the world should be enslaved under Islam and dragged back to the 12th century. Any questions?
I'm rubber, you're glue. Anything you say bounces off me and sticks on to you.
World Cup aftermath ping.
whatever he said was probably mild by nfl or nba standards..IMHO the italian did exactly what he wanted to do which was bait the opposing teams number 1 penalty kicker in case it came down to that, which it did..
Probably something about Zidane's mama and goats.
Materazzi ain't no Maserati...
Europeans have little skill in assimilation/integration. Zidane is a Frenchman, not an Algerian. How come the Algerian president is making a comment about a foreign soccer athlete? (rhetorical).
Well terrorist or not, the guy was a total idiot for doing what he did. The Italian guy tried a strategy and it worked. Good for the old country of my heritage and tough luck for good old France.
I was half expecting the French team to surrender just on general principals anyway. But I got an unexpected bonus; another middle eastern moron making a total jackass out of himself in front of a global audience.
Viva Italia! Life is good.
I heard on the news this morning it was something along the lines of son of a terrorist ho.
I love how the press is spinning it so that the guy who committed the assault is the victim.
It was an impressive feat, actually. Trash talk is supposed to take a guy's head out of the game. Materazzi found a way to use Zidane's head to get the rest of his body out of the game.
Either:
A. He's a liar
B. He really did deserve the headbutt.
"I categorically did not call him a terrorist."
Just called his mother a terrorist. That's different.
I read on some message board (and of course this is rumor) that M. told Z. he wanted his wife's shirt later.
Algeria [N. Africa] is not the middle east.
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