Euro 2016 diary: Zaza’s meme-ories and starting a Löw train

Mark Lomas - Online Managing Editor 16:34 03/07/2016
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    • It was another enthralling couple of days in France.

    START A LÖW TRAIN

    It was 2am in the morning, but that wasn’t going to stop the German fans from singing. Sitting on the last tram back into the city centre from the Stade Bordeaux, the serenading began. The supporters had plenty of reason to celebrate after a thrilling shootout victory over Italy, but attention had quickly turned to a prospective semi-final against France. It wasn’t the most melodic version of La Marseillaise I’d ever heard but it certainly livened things up in carriage two.

    The French national anthem has been adopted by many as a go-to chant during Euro 2016 – Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle’s triumphant tune one that resonates with football folk. I’ve heard Irishmen singing it in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, standing arm in arm with French counterparts to form a rather formidable looking Gaelic/Gallic chain. I’ve seen the Welsh wailing it outside the Gare Lille Flandres, using oversized inflatable daffodils as microphones. And now Germans on a late-night Bordeaux tram, too.

    It wasn’t just La Marseillaise on the German agenda. They paid tribute to Joachim Löw, the “weltbesten Trainer“ (best coach in the world), and belted out a song that has been a Nationalmannschaft mainstay since the 1960s -“Oh wie ist das schon” (how beautiful this is). The next stop for the Löw train is Marseille, whose public transport passengers had better brace themselves.

    THANKS FOR THE MEME-ORIES

    It could so easily have been Italian fans celebrating on that Bordeaux tram, but they were let down by some truly abominable penalties. Louis van Gaal showed at the 2014 World Cup that bringing on a penalty specialist can work wonders – Tim Krul’s heroics taking Netherlands past Costa Rica. Unfortunately, Simone Zaza won’t be remembered quite as favourably.

    Stepping on the pitch a 119th minute substitute for Giorgio Chiellini, Zaza was introduced solely for the shootout. Jamie Carragher was an English equivalent back in the 2006 World Cup quarter-final against Portugal, introduced specifically because of his supposed penchant for penalties. The Liverpool defender failed, and so did Zaza. Spectacularly. The jittery run up, the ball sailing high over the crossbar – for the social media age, it was parody dynamite and the memes were instantaneous.

    In the mixed zone after the match, Zaza and the other unsuccessful penalty takers trundled gingerly through, looking like scolded schoolboys with faces focused firmly at the floor. None spoke, not even Graziano Pelle, who had previously been a charming constant for the English media covering Italy’s games. It was not all that surprising given that, after previous efforts suggested a Panenka may have been on the cards, Pelle dragged his effort tamely wide in the shootout.

    ZLATAN’S LONG GOODBYE

    The Euros were momentarily forgotten when Zlatan Ibrahimovic was finally unveiled as a Manchester United player after several months of speculation. While using #ZlatanTime was a slightly cringeworthy move from the Red Devils, there’s no question that the transfer has stirred optimism among United fans that an exciting new era may await.

    In France, the move has obviously received high billing and there is no question that Parisians in particular are devastated to see his departure. He is a demi-god in the French capital, someone who has transcended sport to also become a cultural icon. This was exemplified by L’Equipe releasing a 12-page magazine dedicated solely to the style of Zlatan.

    What was in it? I hear you ask. Well, there was a double-page spread detailing his best Instagram posts and, my personal favourite, the full page picture of just his ponytail. I know sports fans weren’t the real target audience so I’ll try to dampen the cynicism a little – I actually genuinely enjoyed the cartoon that pictured Ibrahimovic standing alongside the likes of Napoleon and Donald Trump, with the caption “I am Zlatan, who the hell are you?”

    BELGIUM’S LILLE PAD

    The pick of the Euro 2016 quarter-finals has to be Wales’ victory over Belgium in Lille. Around 100,000 Belgian fans crossed the border (the nearest part of which is just 12km away), flooding the city and ensuring it felt like a home match for the Red Devils. However, they were to be disappointed as a wonderful Wales performance secured an historic 3-1 victory.

    Not to let a little thing like a Euro 2016 quarter-final dampen their spirits, however, the Belgians congratulated, and even celebrated with, the Welsh – Lille’s Grand Place full to the brim until the wee small hours. The next morning, the train station was teeming with tired supporters, many of whom had slept at the station under Tricolore or Red Dragon flags.

    On the early train back to Paris, the future of Marc Wilmots was at the centre of most discussions between fans and journalists alike. Christophe Franken, a reporter for Belgian newspaper La Dernière Heure, was one of those to proffer an opinion, saying: “He doesn’t have a Plan B. This isn’t good enough. It is time for him to take another job. Reaching the World Cup and European Championship quarter-finals is a good achievement. But with this generation, we have to be disappointed.”

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