Lawyers to Matrix: You Got to Get Your Game Face On!*
By: Martha | July 6th, 2007
*Note: This headline only works when read in the voice of Avery Johnson, so please indulge me and read it that way before you move on. Thank you.
It was so long ago you could be forgiven for forgetting the whole thing, but way back in 2006 there was a World Cup and, in the final game, this dude named “Zizou” headbutted another guy called “Matrix” in the chest. The reason for the attack was never made clear, but the rumors ranged from racist slurs to nasty comments about Zizou’s sister and the suggestion that the Frenchman’s youngest son might not actually be his (Pippo, I’m looking at you). Since this was Zizou, the possibility that he was just frustrated and tired and wanted to be out of the game never occurred to anyone but me, and all the media assumed Matrix had done something to deserve the giant bruise in the middle of his chest.
Now, though, Matrix is fighting back: Not with the top of his head (because he’s a sophisticated fellow, not a mindless brute), but in a courtroom, with highly paid, well-dressed litigators by his side. He’s suing a trio of English tabloids — The Sun, The Daily Mail and The Daily Star — which all professed to have accurate transcripts of the on-pitch conversation leading to Zizou’s attack, and blamed the whole thing on Matix. Needless to say, the poor Azzurri man “suffered enormous damage to his reputation as a result of the press reports,” and is hoping getting paid will help him begin to get over his pain. (And, if all goes well, there will be several awesome corrections published, something at which the English tabloids excel.)
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Comments
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Materazzi is slime, one of the dirtiest players in Serie A and theres no way that the calm and peaceful Zidane headbutted Materazzi without provocation. Dirtbag
Posted from
United States
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Leaving aside what anyone thinks of Matrix, here’s my issue, Corey — since when is provocation an excuse for a headbutt? Professional sports are FULL OF PROVOCATION. It’s never been ok in any of them for a guy to foul someone else and then say “But he said something about fucking my mom!” No one cares what anyone says to you; if someone tries to wind you up, you find a way not give in — that’s part of the job of every professional footballer, basketball player, American footballer, whatever. If they can’t play through provocation, most of them don’t last very long.
And Zidane, “calm and peaceful”? Come on man, you know he had a temper his whole career. It’s not as if that was is his first red, not by a long shot.
Posted from
Portugal -
Yeah, Zidane was notorious for his temper. Wanna take a wild guess at how many times he’s been sent off in his career? 14. That’s a whole hell of a lot. Think of the dirtiest player or the worst tempered player you can. Steve Walsh? Ben Thatcher? Eric Cantona? Javier Navarro? Vinnie Jones? Not any of those have as many career reds as Zidane.
The head butt was uncalled for and there’s no defending it.
Posted from
United States -
i definately agree. provocation is a big part of the game and if you cant handle it dont play profesional sports. players get it on the field and off the field all the time but they dont turn around and headbutt people! that was stupid of zidane to end his career that way and he knows it. i dont give two shites about what he said about your mom, your sister, your son or the friggin gardener for god sakes! honestly what he did was stupid and it doesnt matter what matrix said you still cant do that! i play soccer in a league that isnt competitive and i get words said to me all the time that i dont like but i dont turn and headbutt them! and then for zidane to have won player of the tournament was disgusting! i mean that just shows kids that if they do something stupid maybe they will win MVP of their soccer team/league. i mean it wasnt even his first time either. in 1998 i believe he stomped on the saudi arabian player after he allegedly provoked him also. this guy needds anger management or something….
Posted from
Canada -
He also had another vicious headbutt during a Juve Champions League match, and I remember being pissed at him for that… but it was funny, for some reason the cameras followed him to the locker room after his red, and it was cool to watch him smash stuff in the dressing room and turn on the little tv in the room to finish watching the game.
I don’t know WHY they decided to follow the wrath of Zizou into the locker room, but it added a cool WWF feel to it, like when the match is going on in the ring but the camera’s take you to the dressing room where two guys are going at it… and by “going at it” I of course mean manly wrestling and fighting, and nothing at all inappropriate like the adorable photo below:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1050000/images/_1054083_zizou_trez300.jpg
Regarding Matrix, here’s some eyecandy for you (and sorry if you’ve seen this one before, but its new to me):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLdIcZ2IuZwPosted from
United States -
Thanks, Sofia and Brian, for making me feel entirely reasonable and not crazy at all. (Both of which are feelings I rarely get to enjoy.)
Please, the Trez love has nothing on this one.
And that Mario thing is very funny — definitely one of the best headbutt videos I’ve seen (and GOD there are a lot of them.)
Posted from
Portugal -
Not only was the headbutt a ridiculous overreaction, but the fact the Matrix got fined and suspended was ludicrous. And, he has every right to sue for libel. I hope he puts those papers under. How could they not retract what was completely falsely written?
Posted from
United States -
I’d imagine if the lawsuit goes ahead, he’ll get paid, Muddia. The slander and libel laws in the UK are much tighter than in the US, where the tabloids can get away with anything. They do, however, sometimes just issue awesome retractions have done with it — stuff like “Yesterday we reported that Justin Timberlake had sex with seven women at once while high on coke in the Brown’s Hotel over the weekend. We were in error — Mr. Timberlake was, in fact, on retreat in Tibet at the time; we’re pleased to be able to clear this up.” Seriously, they’re that bad.
Posted from
Portugal -
Good for Materazzi!
Posted from
United States -
I thought this was all over. Why sue now?
However it might have hurt his “reputation”, that incident put Materazzi on the map. Before, no one except those who followed his club knew who he was. But Zidane was already world famous.
It sounds like Matrix wants to bring the issue to the headlines again. “Any publicity is good publicity” , eh?
Posted from
United States -
yes him getting suspended and fined was stupid because he didnt do the headbutting!!! trash talking hapens all the time and if you suspened every player that did it, there wouldnt be anyone left on the field or in any game in any sport. so by suspending him they should suspend everyone else for doing the exact same thing if they wanted to be fair
Posted from
Canada -
Nelly, I was wondering the same thing — I wonder if the final game being exactly a year ago has anything to do with it.
Posted from
Portugal
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