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Match
of the World Cup
Paul
Whitehouse's Fast Show creation Ron Manager presents Match of the
World Cup - three documentaries looking back at the highs and lows
of the World Cup, from the heady days of 1966 to the heady days
of 1998 via all the heady days that were in between (BBC ONE, from
Monday May 27).
The
first programme features the greatest stories and players from the
tournaments of 66, 70 and 74. England won in 1966 but not before
the World Cup was stolen; they'd had a crunching encounter with
Argentina and, after an epic final, West Germany's Helmut Haller
ran away with the ball. Those were the days!
Mexico
70 saw a Pele-inspired Brazil playing the beautiful game and setting
up the greatest goal ever seen in the final against Italy. Bobby
Moore made that tackle but couldn't stop West Germany coming back
and winning in the quarter finals.
West
Germany 74 was the birth of the Tartan Army and of Scotland's troubles
getting past the first round, but the tournament was set alight
by Cruyff and a brilliant Dutch team playing Total Football. They
enthralled the world but somehow neglected to win the trophy against
Franz Beckenbauer's Germany.
In
programme two, Ron Manager journeys into the dark side of the World
Cup as he dissects Argentina 78, Spain 82 and Mexico 86. In 1978,
Ally’s Tartan Army was on the march but the team failed to
live up to the hype and the bubble burst when Willie Johnston was
sent home in disgrace. It was up to Archie Gemmill to salvage some
pride with one of the great World Cup moments against Holland…
Meanwhile, through a sea of blue and white tickertape Mario Kempes
slalomed through the Dutch to fulfil the dreams of the Junta and
win the cup for Argentina.
At
Spain 82, Northern Ireland caused the upset of the tournament by
beating their hosts in a memorable victory. England were back and
scored the fastest goal in World Cup history before wilting in the
heat. Scotland upset Brazil as David Narey scored first, and paid
the price. The final was remarkable for one of the worst fouls ever
seen on a football pitch when the German goalkeeper Harald Schumacher
flattened Patrick Battiston before Rossi and Tardelli danced around
him to win Italy their third World Cup.
In
Mexico 86, Gary Lineker won the Golden Boot but it was Maradona's
tournament as he used the "Hand of God" against England
and then scored the greatest solo goal in the history of the competition.
In
the final programme, Ron Manager looks back at Italia 90, USA 94
and France 98. Italy was "the greatest show on earth"
as Luciano Pavarotti made sure Radio 1 had to break the habit of
a lifetime and play opera on the airwaves. The Republic of Ireland
exceeded all expectations by reaching the quarter finals thanks
to a penalty scored by, wait for it, David O'Leary. Bobby Robson's
England didn't do too badly either; Gazza sobbed at England's epic
semi-final against Germany and it was the start of an era: England's
dreaded encounters with the penalty shoot-out... The final itself
was a bad tempered affair between Argentina and Germany, Argentina
bearing the brunt of a hostile Italian home crowd. Says journalist
Jimmy Burns: "During the national anthem, Diego Maradona is
clearly mouthing the words 'sons of bitches' as he refers to the
Italian crowd." Nice, as Ron Manager would say.
The
heat of the USA in 94 undid the Republic of Ireland and it was all
too much for John Aldridge as he saw red on the touchline. Romario
and Bebeto were the stars of the tournament for Brazil but their
final against Italy was decided on penalties and Roberto Baggio's
nerves. Says Baggio on his fateful miss: "My idea was to lift
the ball - but not that high!"
Scotland
returned for France 98 and had to play Brazil and the much hyped
Ronaldo in the opening match - and once again they went home too
soon. Says Colin Hendry: "My kids are forever saying to me,
why didn't you clear it off the line Dad?" Not helpful. But
the match of the tournament was England's second round tie with
Argentina which included that goal (Michael Owen) and that sending
off (David Beckham). Says David Seaman on the fateful red card:
"It was harsh - a yellow would have been bad enough but a red!
I don’t know what the referee was trying to do…"
And if that wasn't enough, there was the disallowed goal (Sol Campbell)
and the little matter of the penalty shoot out at the end. Says
actor Simon O'Brien: "When David Batty started to walk towards
the penalty spot, I thought it was a joke." David Seaman adds:
"I've never even seen David take one in training!"
The
final was marked by the bizarre Ronaldo episode - was he playing
or not? Sports writer Danny Kelly comments: "We still don't
know what happened in the three hours building up to the final."
He was off the team sheet and then back on it - but in the end it
didn't matter. Ronaldo was un-inspired, Brazil were lack lustre
and France were simply brilliant - step forward Zinedine Zidane.
Notes
to Editors
Players
reminiscing about their time in the sun
In
Programme One: Nobby Stiles, Jack Charlton (both England 66), Helmut
Haller (Germany 66), Carlos Alberto (Brazil 70), Paolo Cesar, Roberto
Rivellino ( both Brazil 70/74), Francis Lee, Peter Bonetti, Brian
Labone, Alan Mullery (all England 70), Willie Morgan, Joe Jordan
(both Scotland 74), Ruud Krull, Rene Van de Kerkhof and Johnny Repp
(all Holland 74).
In
Programme Two: Mario Kempes, Ossie Ardiles (both Argentina 78/82),
Jorge Valdano (Argentina 86), Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (West Germany
78/82/86), Archie Gemmill, Willie Johnston (both Scotland 78), Gordon
Strachan (Scotland 82/86), Alan Rough (Scotland 78/82/86), Rene
Van de Kerkhof, Johnny Repp (both Holland 78), Claudio Gentile (Italy
78/82), Harald Schumacher (West Germany 82/86), Patrick Battiston
(France 82/86), Norman Whiteside, Gerry Armstrong (both Northern
Ireland 82/86), Martin O'Neill (Northern Ireland 82), Trevor Brooking
(England 82), Kenny Sansom, Terry Butcher (both England 82/86),
Bobby Robson and Gary Lineker (both England 86).
In
Programme Three: Luciano Pavarotti, Bobby Robson, Gary Lineker,
Chris Waddle,Terry Butcher (all England 90), Jurgen Klinsmann (Germany
90), Claudio Caniggia (Argentina 90), Roberto Baggio (Italy 94),
Jack Charlton, Ray Houghton, Pat Bonner, John Aldridge (all Ireland
90/94), Leonardo (Brazil 94/98), Carlos Alberto Parreira (Brazil
94), Colin Hendry, Craig Brown (both Scotland 98), David Seaman,
Steve McManaman, Gareth Southgate (all England 98) and Laurent Blanc
(France 98).
Transmission
information
Match
of the World Cup will be shown over three nights on BBC ONE.
Programme
One (1966, 1970 and 1974): Monday 27 May, 10.35pm
Programme Two (1978, 1982 and 1986): Tuesday 28 May, 10.35pm
Programme Three (1990, 1994 and 1998): Wednesday 29 May, 10.35pm
BBC
World Cup press pack
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