That's it. The game was to difficult for the world "champignons", and they had to use the referee. That way they get the final UEFA always wanted. This isn't football, it's suckball.
It was obviously ball in the hand, it was to close for anything else. The lineman was 50 meters away but his determination quickly made up that penalty at the "right" time.

FOR GOD SAKE IF THEY WANTED TO WIN THEY SHOULD DO IT PLAYING FOOTBALL, NOT TRICKS


[This message has been edited by Game Rod (edited 06-28-2000).]

The French are scum, it wouldn't suprise me one bit.

But Xavier did handle the ball,in the rule book ,it said that if you handle the ball in your box ,its a penalty shot,i dont see what is wrong with that ,all i know is that portrugese fans must be very frustrated and i can understand .

Yes Paolo, but if you watch it carefully, I think you'll see that the ball was shot too close and too fast for Xavier to make that on purpose. The book says that it's a penalty if he moves his hand/arm with intention to handle it. Isn't it?

Game Rod,

That's your opinion, and I respect that. But I have a feeling most who have seen the many replays/angles of the play would say it was closer to "hand to ball." It's for dangerous penalty action moments like these that defenders are trained to keep their hands in.

Regardless of what your heart says, you must admit that it was a plausible call, no?

But if you look closely he kind of pushed it away .He gave a little tap to it,he even tried to cover it .RAI,BBC,TSN,RDS all agreed that the penalty was right .

it's fair France won it, anyway they deserve it as they were attacking all the way. the portuguese were less but also dangerous with their counter-attack. By the way Zidane was excellent, so was Figo.

had anyobdy noticed figo walking out of the game?
i don't think that was a mature reaction from him..he's a brilliant player though

Watch it at normal speed and tell me where he could put his arm. It doesn't seem to me that he could take his arm out of the way. It was already there.

Wasn't the ball shot against him?
_____________________________________________
On another hand, would that penalty be called against France in the same circumstances?

They only called for the penalty after the French players complained.
Who should make the decisions in the field? The players from one team or the referee?

[This message has been edited by Game Rod (edited 06-28-2000).]

No Figo unfortunatley wasn't excellent today. Zidane outplayed him in an impressive manner, stating who's the best in the world.
France won with full merit, the penalty was "good", but it sure sucks like hell that it had to end this way. I don't know, but FIFA should do something about these penalties, maybe awarding some more indirect freekicks or God knows what, but penalties suck. They're the worst thing in football.

p.s. what a ****ed up decision was that taking off rui costa???

Yes ,the ball was shot ,but if u look closely ,Xavier did tap lightly the ball twords the line and im not the only one that said may i remind .And no i aint french or a supporter of theirs .

Zidane was not only excellent, he was brilliant. His ball control was superb. His set-pieces with Henry and Thuram was awesome. France shold be champion on Sunday against any Holland/or Itali

Wouldnt it be a classic a France vs Italy matchup .2 historic teams ,both teams have won at least 1 world cup and of course a grudge match from their last meeting(World cup98 ).

Here comes my opinion.....

I think it was an unintetional hand ball, Xavier was falling backwards and looked like he was putting his hands behind him to break his fall. Just unfortunate the ball hit his hand. Oh well. it doesn't matter, it's over now.

But I have to blame Humberto Coelho, I think this game was lost from the start. Portugal came out playing way too defensivley...Taking off Rui Costa, a player who can make a difference in these situations was a mistake, then replaces him with a defensive mid. Then, he brings on Rui Jorge when Pauleta or Sa Pinto would have been a better choice. To be successful a manager has to take more risks, I don't think this was the way to do it.

Anyways, i'm pround of my team, reaching the semis isn't too bad at all and we'll be ready for the WC and Euro2004 in Portugal. Don't despair Portuguese fans, our team can leave Belgium with thier heads high.

And furthermore, if any good has come out of the tournament for us, it has been the emergence of Nuno Gomes as a great striker, and he's only 23. I really beleive that in a few years he'll be one of the world's best strikers...up there with Vieri, Jardel, and Batistuta. Nothing but good things to look forward to Portuguese fans.

PORTUGAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Any of them could have won. France was more lucky.
Wait till we meet again at 2002!

Paolo the French are scum? Did they dive and were awarded the penalty. Oh know they weren't aiming for the net either. They were aiming for the players hand. Than if the French are scum what does that make the Italians, Dutch and Spaniards that were awarded bogues penalty kicks?

Kostas, I think you were probably aiming at BmwM5 ( great car http://www.soccergaming.com/ubb/biggrin.gif )

I don't think anybody is scum. The players showed a good fair play tonight.
But this penalties stuff already happened with Germany and Italy and others, who were awarded bogus penalties, like you said.

This should be corrected

I think it was a bad call by the ref, it did no look intentional, and the rules state that it has to be intentional to be ruled against. It was no doubt a tough call but the best thing to do would have been to play considering it was extra time golden goal semifinals. When in doubt the best thing to do is not call anything.

p.s. the referring in this competition has been really annoying.

The call was incredibly close but I must say that the ref made the right call, if you notice Xavier stretched out his hand and move his arm out a bit...there is the possibility that he was using his hands to break his fall, but when a decision was need and quick the ref and linesman made the right call...according to the book...thats my opinion and I'm sticking to it...also it is human instict to stop a ball using any part of your body, expecially in that situation, it was probably just first instinct to try to stop the ball, he didn't have time to stop and think about it...

[This message has been edited by Kevin_SG (edited 06-28-2000).]

I don't know if anybody follows hockey here but whne you're in the playoffs and especially in Overtime, the refs allow the players to decide the game not them. That's what the ref did he decided the outcome of the game. I would accept the penalty if a french player would of gotten tripped but that was not the cae it was an unintentional handball. What pisses me off is the ref wasn't going to call it but the french started complaining and the linesmen had to add his two cents. I think Portugal was robbed, so the only thing that would make me happy is for Holland and Italy to beat them badly. Who ever said Figo was immature for taking his jersey off and leaving the pitch, how would you feel if you were playing the most important game in your Country's history, and the referee deciding the outcome of the game, instead of you and your opponents. I believe there were some hidden politics behind this game.

That's what sucks about hockey now, the ref goes home after the second period. Xavier made like a hockey save with his hand, you could clearly see it on the replay, I know it's a difficult call to take for the portuguese but thats the rule.

OK ..... the penalty with Xavier was close (Poor guy) ...... BUT .... the Henry goal .... when Anelka went to retrieve the pass from Thuram ..... HE WAS FREAKIN OFFSIDE!! LIKE TWO FEET OFFSIDE!! FLAG??? NOPE!! BLIND LINESMAN!!

I felt Portugal should have played with a little more offensive punch .... taking off Rui Costa was just as mind-boggling as Spain's substitution of Mendieta. The French did a fantastic job of marking Figo. They always cut the pass off to him and from him, then surrounded him with a sea of white jerseys. ZiZu was brilliant .... and France were lucky to escape, cuz Xavier almost scored in the 90th minute (POOR GUY!!). Still ... Portugal did not deserve to lose like that, beaten by two ludicrious calls and ill-thought substitution. And where were Joao Pinto and Paolo Bento??? I think they would have done a better job.

The penalty on Xavier was NOT intentional. The ball was shot at him and would have hit his hand no matter what. Just like the Chilean defender in WC 98 v Italy. Ball hit hand. He did not have to move it. And The Kid has a very good point. The players should have decided it, not the officials.

I hope Netherlands win tomorrow .... at least one team I can cheer for.

BTW ...... FIGO IS STILL THE MAN!!

[This message has been edited by Woody_007 (edited 06-28-2000).]

Kid i'm on your side, in this case as i have postet a topic about in this forum. once again a ref has desided the outcome of an importent game in Euro 2000. even then i don't like penaltyshootout to be the way to finde a winner either. hell why not flip a coin instead, its just as much lottery as penalties. and vill avoid singel players being hang out to dry i the newspapers like Raul

ricococo.

This is a foolish argument. The ball was going towards goal. The goal was less than a metre away from the ball on contact. Is there anyone foolish enough to not award a penalty, intentional or not.

Ya, the ball would have probably went in.

IT WAS A PENALTY...GOOD JOB REF!

It was a penalty and a good call by the ref and the linesman - I just wish the game could have ended in a different way. I really felt for the Portugese players because imagine what they must have felt - I mean Xavier's not going to say, "er..yeah, sorry guys, I kinda handled it" - they must have felt they were cheated; what Figo did was something that I understand completely, if I was playing for Portugal and I didn't get a chance to see the replay like we do I would have walked off the pitch in disgust too.
But, appart from the ending - what a match!

Zidane was simply sensational!

I will say this if you watched the ITV replays after the game you see that Xavier made movement with his hand as if to deflect the ball away.

Also this was not even close to what happened in WC 98, in that game Baggio was maybe one meter away from the player, here the distance was much greater, maybe 5 meters and no way was he trying to hit his hand he was trying to cross or shoot in the net, so I say it don't compare.

Also, no the hand ball does not have to be intentional to be a called a penalty, it is up to the referee to decide in such case. It is a judgement call, I've seen it called both ways. I think the ref has to decide did the defender do his best to keep his hand from striking the ball, if he decides he did not he can call a pk.

If the hand ball is intentional then the ref can give a yellow or red card at his discretion. for ex for stopping a ball going in the net the player should get a red card.

Anyway as to the other points I agree with Benfica to a point. True Portugal came out slow, but still had lead at half-time and played much more offensive in 2nd half. Overall I think it was a fair result, the French were just a little bit better.

[This message has been edited by PolishPower (edited 06-28-2000).]

If the ball hits the player's arm when its on its way to the goal, and the arm is separated of the body, it's a pk. No matter players intention.

Neutral.......I agree; Zidane was and is sensational, but, their coach played Vieira, Petit, and Deschamps to give him the ability to be 'laissez faire', so lets not forget their contribution. Not to be critical, but Zidane was the least dirtied player on the pitch. I don't think he attempted more than one tackle in the game( a foul on Figo). Whats your opinion on these primadona midfielders, given the obvious benefits of letting Zidane do what he does?

Antithesis,
That's a good point - rarely did Zidane have to make a tackle as Viera, Petit, and Deschamps did the 'dirty work' (or is that harder work?) and gave him the ball. What do I feel about these primadonna midfielders (I include Figo as another player who doesn't tackle)?

It all depends on the team that they're playing in - I mean if you stuck Zidane in the England squad he wouldn't be able to play to even a quarter of his potential as no one would be able to get down and dirty, win the tackles and give him the ball.

When you look at it that way, I think perhaps a player like Edgar Davids should be held in just as high a regard as Zidane (perhaps even higher), as Davids could repeat the exact same performance for England as he could for Holland.

Still, if you have such quality defensive midfielders as Viera, Petit and Deschamps then I see no problem with Zidane taking the role that he has for France. Some of his passes today were simply breathtaking - and I'd pay good money to see Zidane and France play any day of the week, and twice on Sundays.

I wanted Portugal to win but the Ref got it right. Xavier moved his wrist to knock the ball down. If you watch his reaction after you can see that even he realized it.

As for the offisde on the goal. Anelka was offsiede but he wasn't in the play b/c Henri was shooting in the other direction.

In the end France diserved to win.

Is there any site that I could find the replay on >?

I would like to provide an opinion on this topic, but sadly I live in GringoLand and they charge you about $15 per game to watch on Pay Per View.

I would also like to see Henry's controversial goal. I want to see if he really was offside or not. Thanks,

KappA

All I know is Portugal are always screwed if they play big teams here are some examples:

1-Portugal vs Italy for qualifing for WC94 tied 0-0 with minutes to play Dino Baggio comes from behind Vitor Baia and scores the go ahead goal clearly offsides putting Italy in WC94 in the last game of qualifing when both were tied in points before match.

2-Portugal vs Germany for qualifing for WC98 with Portugal up 1-0 Rui Costa in substituted for on his way off feild in a normal matter without saying a word to the referee he is red carded giving Germany an edge in the game and they end up scoring the tying goal in the second to last game were Germany led the group over portugal by 1 point. To this day the ref has yet to give a reason for the carding.
P.S. HE WAS FRENCH REF

3-Todays call against France Need I say More

Tell me what U think

And the sanity of Polishpower prevails. Read his post, everything was spot on.
I have no pity with Portugal's players, the way they reacted was shameful, especially Figo. So maybe it was seen as harsh from their point of view, but the ref's decision is his decision, whether you like it or not you abide by it. I don't care a hoot whether it was the biggest games of their lives or not, they are supposedly professionals and should act accordingly.

Canoe:

Shut up. It may have been a right decision, but it was a very harsh one.

You have no idea how it feels and what kind of pressure is placed on proffessional players. It is devastating, since this tournament is for some, the last grand-scale event they will be participating in.

I, for the first time in my life realized how harsh the players get treated when, after France 98, I spoke to a Spanish woman who worked in a nearby library. She went to Spain during the World Cup and told me that when the team came back from giving one of their worst performances in that nation's history, they were booed and many fans wished to assault them as soon as they were seen in public.

It is a deeply hurtful feeling to sense that you have let your country down though you have tried your hardest to bring them to the top. Figo had all the right in the world to do what he did, I don't blame him. Every headline in every country was pitting him against Zidane. And for a moment, he was the hero, and everyone was rejoicing, until his compatriot and fellow player made a mistake.

So sympathize a bit and then think twice about how those players will be treated when they get home. Maybe then you won't act like such a hard@ss after all.

KappA

BOOOOO Crapa
everone dosn't liike u I bet no one reads your pethy remarks "TWAT" God Where the hell is Gorillaland where this dumbass lives. you TRY to insult people with your "Big Vocabulary" I think he ruins it for everyone!

QueeryHomo:

Have you noticed that the only time that people actually respond to your posts is to speak about how utterly impressive your stupidity is ?

And what's this about people liking me >? Do you have an inferiority complex ? Do you have such a strong desire for acceptance that you must log on to the internet to find friends, or attack people to reach some kind of self-gratification ?

Grow up already. I pointed out how insulting your comments were. Get over it, time to move on.

KappA

This was not even close to a penalty.
Wiltord's shot was way too powerful, Xavier was close and could not move his hand.
But that's what UEFA had always wanted the "GRAND FINALE" between France and Netherlands. I 'm sure that today the Italians will be slaughtered by the referee just like the Czechs.

And by the way Figo was very well closed by Thuram and Vieira and he suffered many hard tackles. Zidane on the other was given too many space by the Portuguese and this is why he made all these "magical" movements. If anyone has seen the Olympiakos vs Juventus Champios League match in 98/99 season he would see that Zidane didn't touch once the ball in that game.

Unfortunately, yes that is what happens when the rest of the team can cover for a certain player like that. And that is when he becomes dangerous like Zidane has. It was the same with Ronaldo before, because he wasn't recognized as a dangerous striker, he was given more space and therefore show off his flamboyant style of play. But later on throughout the years he began to be marked to the point where he would be completely shut down, as in the Brazil-Scotland World Cup opener in 1998.

KappA

You might say I'm bias but I reckon the penalty was fair.
Shame cause Xavier had a great game. But as "greglato" mentionned, look at Xavier after the incident. He falls and stays paralysed for a while. He knew he was in trouble. But I reckon Portugal was playing very well but once Henry scored, It was game over cause France regained their confidence.
Zizou was just amazing.
Shame to hear Eusebio being so unfair with his comments.
Anyway, now, France has to play without Desailly and Vieira for the finale. Are we in trouble or what?

The French marked Figo very good, and the Portuguese still passed him the ball a lot. He couldn't handle all that and went down in the second half. The Portuguese should have played with more confidence, they scared the hack out of France when they did. The game was competitive - much better than today's Holland-Italy.

The ref just ruined a perfect game...

Euro2000 has had really good football,

but as Vitor Baia (the portugese keeper) said, there seems to have been a tendancy for refs to favor the bigger teams over the smaller teams.

It all looks like they were desperate for a Holland France final (which would have been silly coz they have already played each other so could have ended up like this seasons Champions League, with Bayern Munich Playing Real Madrid 4 times and winning 9-6 on aggregate (or something) and still going out.

Look at italy holland, two pens to holland and italy down to 10 men after 34 mins (although all of the decisions were mereited.


chris


PS that ref in Portugal Holland is a disgrace, he also was incharge for the second half of turkey belgium.

Its like he wants to ruin the competition just coz germany didnt get thru

What was wrong with Turkey-Belgium game? nothing. The Austrian ref is excellent, he should be reffing the final.