The night football became irrelevant between

Sport 11
THE ECHO OF INDIA KOLKATA
Thursday
July 7, 2016
The night football became irrelevant
between Germany and France
PARIS , JUL 5/--/France won 2-0 the last time they
played world champions Germany on November 13,
2015 but few that night cared about soccer. The old rivals, meeting again on Thursday for a place in the final of Euro 2016, have fought many epic battles over
the years, including two intense World Cup semi-finals. But the friendly international at the Stade de
France in Paris last November will not be remembered for the goals scored by Olivier Giroud and
Andre-Pierre Gignac. As the French and German
players contesting the game in Marseille on Thursday know very well, events off the pitch dominated
the night. Islamic State claimed responsibility for coordinated attacks which killed 130 people across
Paris, including 90 at the Bataclan concert hall. Two
explosions were clearly heard in the first half from
inside the ground, located on the outskirts of Paris.
The game continued and the players had to wait until after the final whistle to find out what had happened. Waiting for the French team on the way to the
changing rooms were junior Minister of Sport
Thierry Braillard and French Football Federation
president Noel Le Graet. The players were told that
gunmen had launched several attacks across the capital and that three suicide bombers had blown themselves up outside the stadium. France striker Antoine
Griezmann had a horrible feeling when he heard that
shootings were taking place at a rock concert at the
Bataclan Hall. He knew his sister Maud was at a concert but he did not know which one, so he made inquiries. "Thank God, my sister was able to get out of the
Bataclan," he tweeted a bit later. "All my prayers go
to the victims and their families".At the Stade de
France, the fans, who had felt something was wrong
when they saw a helicopter fly over at halftime, were
told to stay inside for about 20 minutes after the game
before they were allowed to leave. Security officials
took the decision to avoid any panic and also because
they wanted to make sure none of the attackers could
get into the stadium. The German players were then
forced to spend the night in the bowels of the stadium
before racing to the airport at dawn. After the at-
tacks, security became a major issue for Euro 2016
where more than 90,000 police, soldiers and private
security agents have been deployed. No major incident has been reported so far. "We feel safe here at the
moment and are not thinking about it," said Germany centre back Jerome Boateng, who has not
brought his family to Paris on security concerns. "We
are only focusing on the sporting angle. The rest is
not relevant." Giroud said he had spoken to Germany
midfielder Mesut Ozil, his team mate at Arsenal, after the November 13 game. "We were all in a state of
shock, French and German" he said. "Whether that
has changed anything to our relations with Germany, I don't know. We still want to push them aside".
FIFA World Cup ticket
prices break $1,000
barrier for first time
Wales fans gather ahead of their semi-final match in Lyon, France --------------- REUTERS
Euro 2016: France-Germany football
relations and the scar of 1982 World Cup
PARIS, JUL 5/--/ It was the
match that had everything spectacular goals, a brutal
clash and a dramatic comeback, before finally, a nailbiting penalty shoot-out. For
many, West Germany's 1982
World Cup semi-final against
France in Seville remains
the ultimate, an engrossing
duel providing new plot
twists at every turn. And as
the two countries prepare to
meet again in the Euro 2016
semi-final in Marseille on
Thursday, the 1982 match
has also become a symbol of
the tense football relationship between France and
Germany. "It is a scar that
will remain forever," said
Alain Giresse, a French
midfield lynchpin at the
time. French football legend
Michel Platini treasures the
encounter as one of the finest moments of his career.
"For me, no book or film or
play could ever recapture
the way I felt that day. It was
so complete, so strong, so
fabulous," Platini said in an
interview several years
later. For all the scintillating
attacking play, it was a savage encounter between Germany goalkeeper Harald
'Toni' Schumacher and
France's Patrick Battiston in
the 57th minute which became the turning point. With
the score at 1-1 after a Pierre
Littbarski goal was followed
by an equalising penalty
from Platini, Battiston was
sent clear with only the ad-
vancing Schumacher to beat.
The French substitute
nudged the ball past the goalkeeper only to be brought
crashing to the ground by
Schumacher, who knocked
Battiston cold and dislodged
two teeth. Actions that
should
have
ear ned
Schumacher a red card, as
well as a penalty to France,
went unpunished. Incredibly, the Dutch referee later
said he had not seen the incident. "I don't blame
Schumacher, it was the referee," said France defender
Marius Tresor, now 66.
Fuelled by a sense of injustice as well as the burning
desire to secure a place in the
final against Italy, France
played fabulously for the remainder of the match. Yet
they were unable to break
down a typically resilient
German side, who went close
to winning the game with two
late efforts, only to be denied
by France's keeper Jean-Luc
Ettori. Early in extra time it
looked as if Germany had
finally cracked. An unmarked Tresor fired France
ahead with a wonderful volley, hooking in a free-kick
from Giresse. Moments later
the diminutive Giresse put
France 3-1 ahead, his powerful long distance shot beat
Schumacher and flew in off
the post. But just as France
were contemplating a place
in the final, Germany hit
back. They reduced the deficit through Karl-Heinz
Rummenigge, introduced as
a substitute though not fully
fit. Two minutes from time
the Germans pulled level,
Klaus Fischer scoring with an
overhead kick from close
range. For the first time in the
history of the World Cup,
penalties would be used to
settle a match. France converted their three opening
spot-kicks and looked to have
gained the advantage when
Uli Stielike saw Germany's
France and Germany were involved in a physical semi-final during the 1982 FIFA
World Cup clash as Germany entered the final winning 5-4 on penalties.File photo
third saved by Ettori. With a
chance to make it 4-2 to
France though, Didier Six's
effort was saved by
Schumacher. Littbarksi,
Platini and Rummenigge all
scored with their next penalties before Maxime Bossis
stepped up only to see
Schumacher save. Horst
Hrubesch, who earlier in the
tournament had attacked
German coach Jupp Derwall
as a coward for leaving him
out of the side, sent Germany
into the final by nervelessly
converting his penalty.
France, one of the most gifted
sides in the tournament, were
out. Platini described the
result as scandalous. In an
interview nearly 20 years
later Platini was more generous. "In the heat of the action,
I felt a profound sense of injustice after Schumacher's
foul, but now I remember that
match as one of the most
thrilling moments of my
life," Platini said. "Incredible." The Battiston injuries
are revived each time France
play Germany. But FrancoGerman writer Marc Wels,
who produced a play about
the game, said the nationalist tensions have eased. "Before the players did not
travel, there was a real identity stake between national
teams who had to carry their
history on their shoulders,"
Wels said. "Now the players
are in the same clubs, its
nicer. And for young people,
it is a question of sport now."
MOSCOW, July 6/--/
World
Cup
ticket
prices have broken the
$1,000 barrier for the
first time. FIFA said
Tuesday the top price
for the 2018 final in
Moscow will be $1,100,
up from $990 for the
2014 final in Rio de Janeiro. Other tickets for
the final will cost $710
and $455, with additional category 4 tickets which are sold exclusively to Russian
residents
costing
7,040 rubles (currently
$110). For inter national fans, tickets for
first-round
games
range from $105-210,
except for the opener,
which costs from $220$550. The first-round
range for the 2014
tournament was $90$175, meaning the cost
of the least expensive
seat has risen 16 per-
Germany dtars Celebrate
International kissing day
ahead of Euro Semis
PARIS , JUL 5/--/ International Kissing Day was established in 2006 to focus on the kissing that takes
place between lovers and to celebrate the place it holds
in our society. The German stars puckered their lips
to 'kiss'. A video was posted by the German Football
Federation.Schweinsteiger, especially, will know a bit
about love and kisses. The 31-year-old mid-field general has been romantically linked with tennis star
Ana Ivanovic. Schweinsteiger has not shied away
from public display of affection for his 28-year-old
Serbian girl-friend, who is considered one of the sexiest on the tennis circuit. As Germany take on France
on Thursday, Schweinsteiger, who was a doubtful
starter with a knee strain, is now back to training.
France are unbeaten in their last nine games, while
Germany have not lost in their last six.
The German stars Bastian Schweinsteiger
and Lukas Podolski puckered their
lips to 'kiss' on the International Kissing Day.
cent. Prices are $115$245 for the round of
16, $175-$365 for the
quarterfinals and the
third-place match and
$285-$750 for the semifinals. Russian residents get sharply discounted rates, with
their cheapest firstround tickets selling
for 1,280 rubles ($20),
an increase on equivalent prices for 2014 but
roughly in line with
prices for South African fans in 2010. FIFA
secretary
general
Fatma Samoura says in
a statement that “we
wanted to make sure
that we priced tickets
fairly to make the
events accessible to as
many people as possible.” World Cup ticket
sales won’t start until
after the Confederations Cup in Russia
next summer.
SL to claim
compensation
for Perera's
steroid ruling
COLOMBO, JULY 6/--/
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is
set to claim compensation
from WADA for batsman
Kusal Janith Perera following his wrong conviction
for the use of a banned
steroid. "The ICC committee asked for a report and
we made a submission on
his behalf to claim all his
costs incurred including
legal and medical in order
to prove his innocence, "
SLC chairman Thilanga
Sumathipala told reporters here on Wednesday. He
said the amount will be determined after Perera's return from England tour day
after tomorrow. "The ICC
and Sri Lanka are together
on this," Sumathipala said
adding that WADA will be
asked to pay compensation
by the ICC. "This has never
happened before in the
history of world cricket,"
Sumathipala
added.
Perera was tested positive
in a lab test which was later
overturned on appeal by
the player, saying the lab
had erred. However, the
ban caused Perera to miss
the ICC World T20 in February. When he was cleared
to play in May it was already too late for Perera to
be in the Test tour of England. He played in the last
Test match as a late replacement in the injury
hit Sri Lanka team.
Oscar Pistorius sentenced to six Years in prison for murdering his girlfriend
PRETORIA: Oscar Pistorius has been sentenced to six
years in prison for the murder of girlfriend Reeva
Steenkamp.Pistorius stood and faced Judge Thokozile
Masipa as she announced the sentence in a South African courtroom on Wednesday. Pistorius was facing a possible 15-year jail term for shooting Steenkamp through
a toilet cubicle door at his home in 2013, but Masipa said
substantial and compelling circumstances existed in the
double-amputee Olympic runner's case to give him a
lesser sentence. Steenkamp's parents, Barry and June,
were present in the courtroom, which was packed with
relatives of both Pistorius and Steenkamp and other observers. In reading out the sentence, Judge Masipa said
Pistorius was a "fallen hero." The judge ordered a recess
to give prosecutors and Pistorius' defense lawyers time
to decide if either wanted to appeal the sentence.
Pistorius was freed from prison in the South African capital Pretoria last October after serving one year of a fiveyear term for culpable homicide -- the equivalent of manslaughter. The double amputee Olympic runner, titled
'Blade Runner', has always believed Steenkamp would
want him to devote his life to charity rather than return
to prison. Steenkamp's father, 73-year-old Barry broke
down during his testimony at the sentencing hearing as
he called for Pistorius to "pay for his crime" of murdering
Reeva, a model and law graduate. Pistorius, who pleaded
not guilty at his trial in 2014, has always denied killing
Steenkamp in a rage, saying he was trying to protect her.
The Supreme Court of Appeal had in December ruled
that Pistorius was guilty of murder, irrespective of who
was behind the door when he opened fire with a high-calibre pistol he kept under his bed.
In reading out the sentence,
Judge Masipa said Pistorius was
a "fallen hero. The judge ordered
a recess to give prosecutors and
Pistorius' defense lawyers time
to decide if either wanted
to appeal the sentence