Zidane: Materazzi insulted my mother and sister

In his first public statement since the head butt, Zinedine Zidane publicly apologised for his sending-off in the World Cup final, but claimed he did not regret his actions against Marco Materazzi. He mentioned that he was provoked by repeated cruel insults to his mother and sister but he did not exactly clear up the air when he left out the actual content of the provocation.

An excerpt from the interview:
'I reacted badly and I would like to apologise for it,' Zidane told Canal Plus. 'I would like to apologise because a lot of children were watching the match. I do apologise but I don't regret my behaviour because regretting it would mean he was right to say what he said. 'There was no tension with Materazzi before or during the match. 'He just put his hand onto my shirt and I told him to stop. I told him that if he wanted it I could give it to him at the end of the match.

'Then he said very harsh words to me and repeated them several times. I left but then I went back towards him and things went very fast. The words he said concerned my mother and sister. 'I heard them once, then twice, and the third time I couldn't control myself. I am a man and some words are harder to hear than actions. I would have rather been knocked down than hear that.' '

He is prepared to defend his actions at the FIFA hearings and he stresses that action should also be taken on Materazzi. "There was a serious provocation," Zidane said. "My act is not forgivable. But they must also punish the true guilty party, and the guilty party is the one who provokes." Materazzi on the other hand, vehemently denies any insults to Zidane's mother so does that mean Zidane is lying? Soccer Pundit feels it is unlikely though and prefers to give Zidane the benefit of the doubt as there is no reason for him to lose his head over trivial insults ten minutes before the end of his career. Nevertheless, Zidane's disciplinary record of 14 red cards in his career will not be looked on kindly at at the FIFA inquiry.

Soccer Pundit feels that while the mystery still lingers on this matter, at least the world has a better understanding on the events which transpired before Zidane's actions. Cruel insults, or for that matter, offensive racist remarks on a fellow player to provoke a reaction and let him get a caution or red card has been around for a long time and is not restricted to soccer alone.

In the past, it was treated as part of the game but the fact that this incident has happened in front of such a big audience and at an important event as the World Cup finals should make the FIFA authority sit up and take notice. The rules of the game is not so clear on verbal provocation as it is on physical retaliation. Maybe it is time to make changes to the rules to prevent further abuse of players, especially those facing racial discrimination.

Empower the referee to take action on such players who disregard basic human rights. However, Soccer Pundit has to emphasise that Zidane's action is wrong and should not be condoned even though he is forgiven. Yes, protection of family honour is a noble act but before any rules come into action, self-restraint is still the best approach, as the wrong message is sent to young children that it is alright to to retaliate when provoked and take the law into their own hands. This will only cause violence to exacerbate...