Drama - Then a Gimmick - July 10, 2006 - The New York Sun
I've been trolling the net for a little more on why Zidane did what he did, and came across this piece of silliness. I wonder if this guy ever actually played, and if he did, doesn't he remember? It was obvious that both sides were pretty exhausted coming into the game. Italy had played 120 minutes to beat Germany. And he faults teams for focusing on the fundamentals. It doesn't matter how pretty you play if you can't defend your own goal. If they want to open up the game a bit more, then either the games have to be spaced out further, to give players time to recuperate, or more substitutions have to be allowed. Why not take the approach of basketball, and allow unlimited substitutions, with players being able to come back in after a rest? Fresh legs will do more than anything else to liven up the game.