#8 Portugal vs Netherlands 25/06/2006
Both sides met during the 2006 World Cup in a match that will be widely remembered for all the wrong reasons. The two had previously met in the semi-finals of the Euros two years earlier and Portugal proved to be too strong a fight for the Dutch team. But the Dutch was determined to have their revenge, this time around.
The match turned ugly soon after kick-off as the Dutch set the tone with a yellow card for a tackle on Cristiano Ronaldo and then again five minutes later as Khalid Boulahrouz hit the winger and was lucky to escape an early red.
Portugal were no better, and the referee Valentin Ivanov struggled to keep the match under his control. It was clear that Ivanov soon became lost in the game, as his decisions though consistent, lacked any substance and he slowly lost the ability to differentiate between a red and yellow card challenge.
Portugal did manage to win the game and Maniche finished it with ease, three minutes after getting his yellow card. That was the only fair play of the game, as players became human footballs; feet came flying in from everywhere with a headbutt added to the mix, as Ivanov dished out a record-breaking four red cards and sixteen yellow cards.
Perhaps that is why this game has been aptly named as the ‘Massacre of Nuremberg’ as four red cards and 16 yellow cards set a new record!
#7 Italy vs France 9/07/2006
The 2006 world was supposed to be Zidane’s tournament as a player, with the French dominating the Italians despite the scoreline being 1-1. But then the great Zinedine Zidane – playing in his last ever match as a player – wanders past the Azzurri defender Marco Materazzi. And the rest they say is history, as amid a tense and tight Olympiastadion, thousands in Berlin and much more live, watched as the Frenchman and the Italian exchanged words.
France took the lead after the current Real Madrid boss scored from an arguable penalty. Marco Materazzi was at fault, as it was his tackle on Malouda (replays show that there wasn’t any contact) and Les Blues were ahead after seven minutes. However, the Italian defender was not done, not by a long shot, as he put the Italians back on track less than twelve minutes later with a thumping header (ironic??).
But the more important challenge, was in the 110th minute, as Zidane walked back towards Materazzi, and then, in what seemed like slow motion, locked his gaze and unleashed an unstoppable headbutt right into Materazzi’s mid-riff. The Italian fell like a sack of potatoes and Zidane – a god among Los Blancos and France fans alike – joined an elite group of players to have been sent off in a FIFA World Cup final, a rather unfortunate end to a glittering career...
