Zidane Lives to Fight Another Day as Rosetti Poised to Be the Next Collina

(begun on my flight to Frankfurt and then finished in Berlin)

It would be unthinkable to compare the dashing Roberto Rosetti to the somewhat frightening visage of Pierluigi Collina on looks alone, but when it comes to refereeing competency, the Italian referee who wasn’t originally chosen to work at this year’s Finals has proven to be amongst the very best in the world. The Round of 16 clash between European heavyweights Spain and France would certainly prove to be a challenging test as they squared off in Hanover, but Rosetti would show us all why he deserves to be considered by FIFA to officiate one or more of the tournament’s eight remaining matches.

In only the game’s first minute, Ribery was held and his jersey tugged. A minute later Spain committed their first foul of the match when David Villa took down defender Willy Sagnol. On the next offensive series for Spain, Villa was way offside, but the pass was out of his reach anyway. Proving he was a force to be reckoned with, Villa went up for a high ball in the 5th, but Barthez was there to snare it before the Spaniard could get his head to it.

Shortly thereafter we got a good look at Rosetti’s confidence and command of the match when he reversed the decision to award France a corner kick, instead giving Spain a free kick for a call against Thierry Henry for handling the ball. It seemed as though the headset technology was employed here and that effective communication had been used by Rosetti and his Assistant at that end of the pitch. Although the French players seemed confused by this reversal, Henry must’ve had a good idea of what was happening since the replay clearly showed that he used his hand to try to control the ball before it went out of play over the end line and not off the Spanish defender as first thought.

The referee called a foul on a French corner kick that was difficult to spot in real time. But the replay clearly showed that Patrick Vieira had climbed over the back of a defender. Moments later Thuram thumped David Villa. The ensuing free kick by Pernia just missed the far upper left corner of the goal.

Sergio Ramos was fouled in the 11th and a minute later Henry’s shot from just inside the penalty area was fired directly at Casillas. Raul was whistled for a handball moments later when the ball bounded off his knee and into his outstretched arm. On the next play Zidane was just barely offside, acknowledging as much to the Assistant Referee with his thumb and index finger about an inch apart and a wry smile on his face. It was a moment of levity during the opening stages of this intense affair.

Zidane seemed like a man renewed as he won a corner in the 16th, but nothing came of that. Three minutes later Xavi knocked over Malouda, bringing to an end a long Spanish possession. Torres was pulled down a minute later and then France would win a call at midfield. Rosetti was allowing the game to flow, but still calling the necessary fouls to keep the players happy.

In the 23rd Henry looked miffed as he was stripped, but there was no foul. After they won the ball back, Henry received a pass on the right and sent it across the middle, but neither Ribery nor Vieira were able latch onto it as it went through the goal area.

Right after Vieira’s third foul, in the 26th minute, Spain worked the ball into the penalty area and it was Pablo who was about to receive the ball about fifteen yards from goal as he faced the other direction. But he never did have the chance to collect the pass as Lillian Thuram stepped onto the back of his foot and bumped him before the ball ever arrived.

Again, you may say that it wasn’t much of a foul, but it was surely enough to prevent the attacker from making a fair play for the ball. It was a poor decision by Thuram, one that was immediately whistled as Rosetti pointed demonstratively to the penalty spot.

Valencia’s David Villa stepped up to take the kick and Barthez guessed the right way, but Villa’s shot had just enough pace and placement to beat the outstretched keeper. Spain were up 1 – nil in the 28th minute.

Right after the goal with the ball in play, the AR waved his flag to alert Rosetti about an extra ball on the pitch. Spain returned the ball to France to restart the match.

Malouda was offside in the 30th and a minute later the referee would warn the Frenchman about grabbing or obstructing the keeper right before his team took a corner. Spain would clear it, but the French retained possession until Henry was flagged for offside.

In the 32nd, Torres was called for handling the ball and showed his disagreement with that decision. Sagnol fouled Pernia after the play in the 33rd. And then Xavi was called for a minor infraction as it appeared that Rosetti was tightening things up a bit.

Ribery drew a foul at midfield in the 35th, but the French attack was once again stymied by an offside flag against Henry. Ramos was whistled for blocking Malouda’s path in the 36th and Makelele did the same thing against Torres a minute later.

In the 38th it was Zidane who knocked Xavi off the ball and Alonso obstructed Malouda a few seconds later. Henry was offside yet again in the 39th and again in the 41st, but on the latter occasion the ball was played to an onside Franck Ribery whose well-timed surge through Spain’s backline left only Iker Casillas to beat. And just as I saw last year in Valencia against Bosnia, the striker went left to Casillas’ right before providing just enough pace on the ball to beat two Spaniards across the goal line. Things were knotted up at a goal apiece right before the half.

In the 43rd Torres went down in the French penalty area, but Rosetti waved for him to get up as no foul had been committed. Rather, it was simply Torres’ own momentum that took him to ground after an out-of-control dash into the box.

And moments after a ball was played too far ahead of Henry, it was halftime and Jill and I were off to Calway’s Grill around the corner from the airport. My plan was to watch the second half there – hopeful that the game would end without going into overtime – and then head over to catch the first leg of my flight to Berlin, giving me little more than an hour to check in and reach my gate.

So it was still 1 – all in the 50th minute when Jill and I arrived at our destination about twenty minutes later. In the 52nd, Zidane sent a wonderful through-ball to Malouda whose dink shot forced a tough save by Casillas.

And in the 54th Spain brought in fresh legs in the form of Joaquin and Luis Garcia. A minute later Pernia fouled Sagnol after the French defender unintentionally played the ball with his hand when he slid on the turf.

Pernia committed another foul in the 56th, for an arm on Zidane’s shoulder, but the free kick amounted to nothing when Rosetti whistled for an obstruction of the Spanish keeper.

In the 57th we’d see one of the few bad refereeing decisions of the match as Xavi appeared to be kept onside by a defender on the other side of the pitch. But I think Xavi screened the AR from seeing that man.

Malouda was whistled for tugging Garcia’s jersey and then Joaquin would smile at Rosetti after being called for holding Malouda. Pernia then committed his third foul in the past ten minutes…the ball soon went back the other way and across the French goal-mouth before it was cleared by Sagnol.

The Frenchman cleared another dangerous ball in the 60th and then Ramos made a solid defensive effort to force a French corner kick that amounted to nothing. In the 62nd Casillas was fouled by Thuram and then in the 63rd Vieira committed a little foul, but his tally was building up and I wondering how many more it would be before he’d get booked.

As it was, only one more foul actually. First, he was called for handling the ball and then right before Vieira’s booking in the 68th, Abidal was told by Rosetti to apologize to a Spaniard for coming in late on him. More good stuff from the referee.

So then after Vieira’s caution for Persistent Infringement following his fifth foul of the match, Joaquin held Sagnol and was then told by the referee to put the ball down. Henry was offside soon thereafter and then in the 71st Casillas came out to clear the ball after a French attacker was in alone onside.

I was beginning to worry that no more goals would be scored and I’d miss the conclusion of this compelling match while I waited on line at the airport.

Pernia committed his fourth or fifth foul of the match when the AR called him for holding Malouda. Rosetti again warned the players about grabbing before the free kick was sent into the Spanish penalty area and Malouda would be called for a foul moments later.

There was a short stoppage after Vieira accidentally poked Torres in the eye as the Frenchman ran away from his pursuer. In the 74th, Rosetti went over to the Spanish bench to tell Luis Aragones – their racist coach – to sit down after too much protesting about the finger in the eye. Rosetti was not about to let Aragones dictate things as play continued on.

Spain returned the ball to France on the restart…Zidane was fouled and then Marcos Senna committed another Spanish foul on the other side of the field as things were getting tense entering the final quarter-hour of the match.

Sagnol committed a foul about forty yards from goal in the 77th and then Ramos may have been trying to win a penalty with a dive, but the ref wasn’t buying it and no card was shown as I’m sure Rosetti made a mental note.

Joaquin hit the side-netting from close-range and a tight angle in the 79th and Ramos was guilty of a foul shortly thereafter on an aerial ball. A couple minutes after that Henry and Puyol were racing across the pitch for a ball and Puyol moved slightly into Henry’s path and stuck an arm out in the process as the speedier Frenchman tried to get around him. As Rosetti was directly behind the two players, he probably had a good angle on the infraction he spotted. The replay wasn’t quite as conclusive, but I think Rosetti got it right. And if it was a foul, then the booking seemed justified as well since it was committed in order to slow down the French counter-attack.

The ensuing free kick was crossed over the top by Zidane from about forty yards out. After making its way through a sea of players, Vieira was there at the far post to nod it down and off the leg of a Spanish defender – Ramos I believe – and into the net. It’s quite possible that Casillas would’ve had it if not for Ramos’ touch, but the point is moot as France took a stunning lead with less than ten minutes remaining to play.

Henry was offside, AGAIN, in the 87th and moments later Vieira was called for a foul that Ribery didn’t like. He was booked for kicking the ball away. Barthez punched the free kick away and Garcia would win a corner…and then another…and then Barthez was bumped, but he’d saved it anyway.

In the 90th Garcia was rightly called for a hand to Thuram’s face and in stoppage time Zidane was booked for stepping on the foot of a Spaniard as they were about to initiate a counter-attack. But maybe that gave him a jolt of adrenaline because the following minute he received the ball in an onside position on the left, bided his time, faked out Puyol, and then buried it from about twelve yards out to secure the victory for Les Bleus.

This compelling encounter between these two western European neighbors would end 3 – 1 for France, who would now pass through to the quarterfinals for a rematch of the 1998 World Cup final with Brazil. In all likelihood, after a performance like that, Rosetti was also likely bound for the final eight…and I was bound for Germany as I darted out the door with Jill.

Until next time…

peace,
ac

p.s. As a postscript, flooding rains along the East Coast kept me from leaving that night and I worried that my revised plans to travel the following day might get scuppered as well since there was no letup in the heavy weather. But I did eventually make it to Berlin about twenty-four hours before the kickoff between Germany and Argentina.