He do that for the honor of his family.
ZINEDINE Zidane has broken his silence on his World Cup final shame and insisted he had no regrets over his astonishing attack on Italy defender Marco Materazzi.
After three days of intense speculation about what it was Materazzi had said to provoke the French superstar, Zidane finally revealed his side of the story in an interview with French broadcaster Canal Plus.
And while he apologised to the world for the headbutt on the Inter Milan player, he refused to back down, saying Materazzi repeatedly had insulted his mother and sister.
"I can't say I have any regrets about what I did because that would be like admitting that he had every reason to say what he said," Zidane said. "I can't, repeat can't, say that. He had no reason to say what he said. It's always the reaction that is sanctioned and not the provoker. I tell myself that if things happened this way, it's because somewhere up there it was decided that way. And I don't regret anything that happened, I accept it."
Zidane explained how the confrontation started when Materazzi began pulling his shirt. "I told him to stop and that he could have it if he wanted at the end of the match," he added. "That was when words were said, very hard words and he said them several times.
"Words can sometimes be harder than actions. It all went very quickly and they were words that hurt me deep down. I would rather have taken a punch in the jaw than have heard that and the real culprit should be sanctioned and the real culprit is him. He provoked it all.
"Do you imagine that in a World Cup final like that with just 10 minutes to go to the end of my career, I am going to do something like that because it gives me pleasure?"
Although Sunday's final was Zidane's last match before retirement, FIFA is still investigating his dismissal for violent conduct. He faces a fine and a possible five-match ban.
While Zidane was speaking on television in France, excerpts from an interview Materazzi has given to Italian sports paper Gazzetta dello Sport were issued on its website.
"I didn't mention anything about religion, politics or racism," he said.
"I didn't insult his mother. I lost my mother when I was 15 years old and still get emotional when I talk about it. Naturally, I didn't know that his mother was in hospital but I wish her all the best. Zidane is my hero and I have always admired him a lot."
Materazzi had admitted that he did insult Zidane, but suggested his comments were nothing out of the ordinary.
Asked what he would say to the FIFA inquiry, Zidane replied: "I will go and I will tell everything I have just said." He also said he was sorry for his actions, which he confessed were unacceptable.
"I want to ask for forgiveness from all the children who watched that," Zidane said. "There was no excuse for it.
"I want to be open and honest about it because it was seen by two or three billion people watching on television and millions and millions of children were watching.
"I have children, I know what it's like and I always tell them not to be taken advantage of and to avoid this type of situation."
Zidane ruled out the possibility of returning as a player.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter explained that Zidane's red card was not the reason he failed to reappear on the pitch after the match.
"I was told that at the end of the game, the French federation executives asked Zidane to go and receive his medal and he replied that he didn't deserve any medal," Blatter said.
Source: http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/insults-to-mother-provoked-zidane/2006/07/13/1152637806788.html
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