Italian team named Knights
of the Republic
July 3rd, 2000
SportsServer
By Jude Webber
ROME - Italian media cursed
its side's bad luck after the 2-1 defeat by France in the Euro 2000 final
but the players awoke on Monday to find they had been made Knights of the
Republic.
Newspapers, struggling to
put a brave face on things, also blamed bad refereeing and praised the
performance of the underdog side no one expected to do so well.
The appreciation was echoed
by Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, who watched the match and went
into the changing room afterwards to offer his condolences to the distraught
squad. He later made all the players Knights of the Republic.
Reflecting the Italian loss
to a golden goal by David Trezeguet, Corriere dello Sport devoted half
of its front page to a headline, in giant black letters, reading "What
bad luck."
"We deserved the title,"
it added underneath.
"We got into to the final
by a stroke of luck because the Dutch deserved to go through," L'Unita
newspaper said in a front-page editorial, referring to Italy's semifinal
defeat of the home favorites on penalties.
"And we were beaten in the
final by a stroke of bad luck. We deserved to win yesterday's match," L'Unita
added.
La Stampa daily, speaking
for many Italians, said Swedish referee Anders Frisk "dragged the stoppage
time on intolerably."
"Accursed minute" ran the
headline in Il Messaggero daily. Sports Bible Gazzetta dello Sport called
it "hateful."
But commentators consoled
themselves with Italy's improved performance after their ultra-defensive
play in the semifinals.
"What a shame. Italy were
great," Gazzetta's headline said.
SPECULATIVE
"After so much criticism
of our speculative style of soccer, Italy had shown World Cup champions
France that it could play as well or better," Gazzetta's editor Candido
Cannavo said.
"Thanks anyway, Azzurri,"
ran La Stampa's headline.
RAI state radio commented
wrly that Italy was used to winning by playing badly, but not to losing
when they played well.
Former Italy coach Arrigo
Sacchi, a stern critic of Italy's traditionally defensive play, offered
bitter-sweet praise, saying in an editorial in La Stampa that France perhaps
deserved to win but that Italy had been "magnificent."
"They fought with fury, doggedly,
with courage. No one held back. This team could not have done any better,"
he said.
In the search for a scapegoat,
most pointed the finger at striker Alessandro Del Piero, who missed two
chances that could have sealed Italy's victory.
A photograph of him, flat
on his back on the pitch, his hands over his eyes, summed up Italy's despair
on many newspaper front pages.
"Next season will be the
crucial one to see what's left of the great champion we once knew," Corriere
dello Sport said.
.
