WORLD CUP FEVER - July 12 The World Cup Final Brazil France

Ooh! Ronaldo's not playing is the news as we approach the last fence, the final hurdle, the World Cup bloody Final. Gosh, what in Jimmy Hill's name has happened? we all asked. But before we could get an answer, we were told that he is going to play after all. Ha ha, it's all a big joke. Except there is the official teamsheet with a cross against Ronaldo's name as a substitute and Edmundo marked down to play instead. World Cup confusion! Apparently Brazil didn't even warm up properly but I wouldn't know cos I was in the kitchen preparing a hasty - but tasty - World Cup feast including the finest wines available to humanity, from Budgen's. Still undecided who I wanted to win, the biggest game since the last biggest game kicked off. Now, there was so much chatting and certain people dropping food all over my carpet that it was difficult to pay attention for the first 20 minutes. It was clear, though, that Ronaldo was a poor imitation of a pale shadow of his former self. The man couldn't run, he was just staying in one small circle waiting for the ball which never arrived. Bad knee, dodgy tummy? He'd only arrived at the Stade de France 45 minutes before kick-off and Brazil had to convince FIFA that he was going to start. It emerges later that he was ill, injured, unprepared in any case. 'Before the game we were worried about his condition and the way he was thinking,' said Bebeto.

What emerges halfway through the first half is an Emmanuel Petit corner that is met by the balding forehead (you know what I mean) of Zinedine Zidane. At last he's scored! And then, as the half draws to a close, he does it again, this time a corner from the left. Blimey Charlie, who'd a thought France would be two-up at half-time? Not me. Or you, so don't pretend you did.

Surely Brazil will come out fired up for the second half? Maybe Mario Zagallo will make some changes, perhaps get Ronaldo off. No. Granted, the French defence is superb and they restrict Brazil to a handful of half chances. But the whole team looks below par. Guivarc'h and Dugarry were crap and missed some great chances. Desailly gets himself sent off for a second yellow, which is unfortunate as he's been excellent throughout the competition, but you couldn't argue too much with the decision. Although I did at the time. Vieira comes on to wild applause, from me. And then... with time running out... Patrick Vieira surges forward... slides the ball through to ... Emmanuel Petit, who hits a perfectly placed shot beyond Taffarel's reach and into the corner of the goal. Three-nil! Leading to the headline in Monday's Mirror: 'Arsenal win the World Cup.' Okay, Zidane was man of the match but Petit was gigantic, titanic, and other words meaning he played like a colossus.

Brazil were hugely disappointing. Zagallo was obviously under pressure to include Ronaldo but, as he said afterwards, 'He was really not fit to play and it really affected us. I was wondering all the time if I should keep Ronaldo on the pitch or take him off.' Still, one man's health and performance shouldn't disturb the rest of the team, especially on an occasion like this. I feel a tiny bit sorry for Ron, to be honest, but he'll have many more occasions to prove himself. Was Zagallo under pressure from Nike to play him?

Zagallo, despite his tears in the semi-final when he came across like a cuddly old grandad, is an arse. For the way he continually slagged off every team he faced, even the Dutch, who were nothing special and utterly predictable according to him, and for the way in which he reacted to every question as a personal attack. Mind you, Aime Jacquet is a pretty hard character to warm to as well.

And so that's it. I stayed up and watched every last second of World Cup round-ups and news, including the splendid Danny Kelly on Under the Moon. And now, we bid a weary farewell to France 98 and lay down our footballing hats for another four years. Or until the 98/99 season starts in August. And there's qualification for Euro 2000 in September... And the European Champions League! Oh yes.

Final line-up:
Brazil: Taffarel, Cafu, Junior Baiano, Aldair, Roberto Carlos, Dunga (capt), Cesar Sampaio (Edmundo, 75), Rivaldo, Leonardo (Denilson, 46), Bebeto, Ronaldo.

France: Fabien Barthez, Lilian Thuram, Marcel Desailly, Frank Leboeuf, Bixente Lizarazu, Christian Karembeu (Alain Boghossian, 58), Didier Deschamps (capt), Zinedine Zidane, Emmanuel Petit, Youri Djorkaeff (Patrick Vieira, 76), Stephane Guivarc'h (Christophe Dugarry, 66).

Referee: Said Belqola (Morocco).

Booked: Junior Baiano (33), Didier Deschamps (37), Marcel Desailly (47 and 68), Christian Karembeu (56).

Results:

Brazil (0) 0	France (2) 3
	Zidane 27, 45 Petit 90

Extra time::
Top goalscorers: Suker 6, Batistuta, Vieri 5, Salas, Hernandez, Ronaldo 4, C Sampaio, Bebeto, Rivaldo, Henry, Klinsmann, Bierhoff, Bergkamp 3

Goals scored: 171 (ave 2.67 per game), shots 1881 (29.4 per game), shots on target 891 (13.9 per game), corners 667 (10.4 per game), fouls 2135 (33.4 per game), yellow cards 250 (3.91 per game), red cards 22 (0.34 per game), substitutions 330 (5.16 per game).

The top three goals, according to a BBC competition: 1st Bergkamp v Argentina, 2nd Owen v Argentina, 3rd Njanka v Austria. Which is what I would have voted for, but I didn't.

Your last quote:
'The World Cup is a truly international event.' John Motson