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All I can say is, how very French.
Instead of a blubbering apology to the nation, France coach Raymond Domenech chose the press conference after his side’s elimination from Euro 2008 to propose to his girlfriend, Estelle Denis.
It’s right up there with such great Gallic oddball moments like Eric Cantona’s “seagulls” soliloquy on his retirement, or Zinedine Zidane’s headbutt in the World Cup final. They may be playing with the élan of a group of sclerotic Palm Springs housewives, but Les Bleus are never short of personality, which is why I have a soft spot for them.
As I do the Oranje, for obvious reasons. (Little known fact: my family is actually Dutch – Fink is a bastardisation of Van der Vink; I am not Jewish, repeat, not Jewish.)
It’s certainly a nice time to be orange with the Netherlands slaying all before them at Euro, but anyone who knows anything about Dutch football will be wary of claiming the title is a laydown misere.
Marco van Basten’s team should make the final in Vienna on current form but the Italians are looming in the semis and, knowing the Azzurri, who always start poorly then take home all the silver, we’ll be stomaching the revolting sight of Fabio Grosso on the winners’ dais yet again.
And so to ANZ Stadium in Sydney.
There’s been some suggestion in the News Limited press that Football Federation Australia is shortchanging the fans by permitting Pim Verbeek to field an odds ‘n’ sods line-up for Sunday night’s WCQ dead rubber against the Chinese.
Perhaps, but Verbeek is well within his remit to rest those players that earned Australia’s progression to the next phase of World Cup qualifying in Asia last weekend in Qatar.
However, it would have been a nice gesture (and I would argue beneficial for the campaign) for the FFA and Verbeek to play those squad members who got little or no game time in Dubai and Doha, particularly entertainers such as – am I allowed to say it? – Nicky Carle, Mark Bresciano and Scott McDonald.
Forking out $90 to see what to all intents and purposes a training run for Graham Arnold’s Olyroos will stick in the craw of some punters who hoped this match would be a ding-dong affair, but unfortunately them’s the breaks in football.
Failing the appearance of those aforementioned players, it would be an even nicer gesture by the FFA if those people who bought a full-priced ticket to the match were given priority status for the next WCQ played in Sydney or, alternatively, given a half-price discount on their next ticket purchase to a Socceroos or A-League match.
A note of advice to the FFA: don’t piss off your constituents. Many of the fans preparing to head out to Homebush on Sunday night will have also held tickets to the aborted Zinedine Zidane charity match and will rightfully have had a gutful of football if the game turns out to be fizzer.
No customer likes being ripped off. And ripped-off customers have a habit of never coming back again.
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