Italy floats in soccer heaven
Night of wild celebrations for Azzurri's fourth World Cup (ANSA) - Rome, July 10 - After a night of wild celebrations, Italy is preparing to welcome home the Azzurri heroes who gave the nation its fourth World Cup Sunday .
"It's All True - Champions of the World," read Monday's front-page headline of sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport, above a photo of captain Fabio Cannavaro holding high the sport's most sought-after trophy .
"The Italy of Champions," declared Milan-based daily Corriere della Sera .
The Azzurri return from Germany Monday afternoon for a victory party at Rome's Circus Maximus, the site of an ancient chariot-racing arena. AS Roma and Italy star Francesco Totti said he wants at least "two million" fans to come .
With the match tied at 1-1, Italy beat France 5-3 on penalties in Sunday's final .
Palermo left-back Fabio Grosso nailed the winning spot-kick, sparking celebrations that lasted till dawn .
Fans sprayed each other with prosecco sparkling wine - French champagne was avoided - and launched the so-called 'carousel' of people buzzing around in cars and scooters, waving flags and hooting their horns .
Some even squeezed into the open boots of automobiles, while others cruised around on the roofs to get a better view of the parting and groups of friends piled into the backs of trucks .
One of Rome's famous 'speaking statues' - which have been used for centuries by local people for graffiti poking fun at the authorities - featured a notice announcing the death of French football .
"In 25 years time, when today's generation of children are adults, Italy's World Cup celebrations will stay in their memories," wrote Gianni Riotta in Corriere della Sera .
"July 9 2006 will be alongside joys like a wedding with confetti or a sand castle at the beach with a child ". The unofficial anthem of the victory was the "po-po-po-po-po-po-po" riff of the White Stripe's song 'Seven Nation Army' - some fans changed the lyrics to "the cham-pions of the wor-ld" .
The tune was originally adopted as a soccer chant by AS Roma fans and was then adopted for the national side .
There was also plenty of chanting casting aspersions about the villain of the night - France's Zinadine Zidane, who was sent off for head-butting Italy defender Marco Materazzi .
Curiously the two players were also the protagonists of the main events of the match during regular time. After just six minutes Materazzi tripped France's Florent Malouda in the penalty area and Zidane chipped in the resulting spot-kick .
The Inter stopper soon made amends, heading home the equalizer at the other end. Materazzi also scored one of Italy's five penalties in the shoot-out .
"It is the greatest (feeling of satisfaction) of my life," said Azzurri coach Marcello Lippi .
"I won the Champions League and the Intercontinental Cup with Juventus, but the World Cup transmits other types of emotions" .
AC Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso said the match-fixing scandal that threatens to see his club relegated, along with three others - Juventus, Lazio and Fiorentina - actually helped the Azzurri at Germany 2006 .
"Without the scandal we would not have won this World Cup," the player said. "It gave us strength and team spirit" .
Italy's three previous World Cup wins came in 1982, 3-1 against West Germany; in 1938, 4-2 against Hungary; and in 1934, 2-1 against Czechoslovakia .
http://www.ansa.it/main/notizie/awnplus/english/news/2006-07-10_1101925.html
© Copyright ANSA. All rights reserved
"Pulver ist Schwarz, Blut ist rot, golden flackert die Flamme" Ferdinand Freiligrath (1810-1876)
