Henry drifted to the left flank, leaping to flick on a high cross from his teammate.
Malouda, one of the famed "Guingamp Twins," charged into the box and was brought down from behind by Materazzi.
The referee immediately pointed to the spot.
Malouda had won the penalty!
Back in the day, he and Drogba—one tall, one fast—had unleashed a "black storm" across Ligue 1.
Drogba later joined Chelsea for a record fee, while Malouda signed for French giants Lyon.
But this season, the rise of young Benzema began to threaten his place in the squad, sparking thoughts of a reunion with Drogba at Chelsea.
Then came Zidane's moment of magic—a delicate Panenka.
The ball struck the crossbar, bounced into the goal, hit the ground, and bounced back out.
From the front angle, it almost looked as if the ball hadn't fully crossed the line.
Buffon, clutching the ball, signaled to the referee that it hadn't gone in, and the Italian players surrounded the official in protest.
But Zidane waved for his equally uncertain teammates to celebrate with him—acting as if it were already settled.
In the end, the goal stood. Side replays showed the ball had completely crossed the line by nearly thirty centimeters.
Later, Zidane admitted that, at that moment, he'd been a little nervous.
1–0. A dream start for France.
However, in the 18th minute, Materazzi redeemed himself. Rising high at the far post, just outside the six-yard box, he outjumped Vieira—the world's top defensive midfielder—and powered in Pirlo's corner.
1–1. The match was level again.
In the 56th minute of the second half, Vieira pulled his thigh muscle and had to come off. His lack of sharpness earlier had also contributed to Materazzi's goal.
Alou Diarra—who had previously played for Bayern Munich and Liverpool but never made a first-team appearance—came on to replace him.
At the 61st minute mark, Italy made two substitutions.
The powerful Iaquinta replaced Totti.
Roma's new midfield core, De Rossi, came on for Perrotta.
But neither team could find the net again.
By the 86th minute, Italy used their final substitution, sending on Del Piero for Camoranesi.
Lippi was clearly preparing for extra time.
With De Rossi's strong defensive attributes, Del Piero moved into the attacking midfield role, freeing up Zambrotta to surge forward down the wing.
Italy were confident heading into extra time.
By then, Zidane would be out of energy—and France had no one else close to his level in midfield.
Statistically, France were dominating Italy in every advanced metric.
Zidane was the heart of it all.
But Henry had been injured early on; every time he tried to run, his head spun. He could stretch the play wide, but shooting was out of the question.
Malouda and Ribéry hadn't brought their finishing boots either, leaving France in control but without goals.
If only they had someone like Su Hang…
In the 88th minute, Henry once again pulled wide on the left, feinted several times, then whipped in a half-high cross.
Inside the six-yard box, Zidane and Materazzi stood in exactly the same positions as during Materazzi's earlier equalizer against Vieira.
In history, that cross had caused no danger.
Back then, Materazzi pinned Zidane with his left arm, lifted his left leg, and cleared the ball first.
But this time—this instant—Zidane seemed to slip into bullet time.
Everything froze around him, and only he could see it all clearly.
He saw Materazzi's leg rise and knew what would come next.
But knowing didn't help—no sane man would throw his head toward a swinging boot.
Too dangerous.
Who would risk their skull against a studded cleat?
Kaká: "That'd be me!"
But then, Su Hang's words from a post-match interview echoed in Zidane's mind:
"A player like Zidane—if he retires without leaving something behind for world football, it would be a loss, not just for him, but for the entire sport."
The image of lifting the Champions League trophy that summer flashed before him.
Zidane had thought he could accept regrets—he had already won everything a player could possibly win.
But after meeting Su Hang, he realized: was he truly at peace?
No. He wasn't.
He had many regrets.
Every missed goal, every lost match, every title that slipped away—they were all regrets.
But Su Hang accepted his regrets and used them as fuel.
And Zidane… once upon a time, he had been that kind of player too.
But somewhere along the way, he stopped being that man.
They all did.
At that moment, Zidane rediscovered what football truly was.
His eyes blazed. He threw his head forward, smashing toward the right.
Bang!
A header!
The ball flew into Italy's net.
"GOAL!"
"It's in! He's done it! A last-minute winner!"
"What just happened? Who scored that?!"
"Oh! It's Zidane! Zidane with the header! A brace for him!"
"He beat Materazzi to it! He—"
The commentator's voice suddenly cut off.
Henry and the others in the box immediately waved frantically for the medics.
Zidane lay motionless, eyes shut, not moving.
Panic swept the entire stadium.
Even the Italian players no longer cared about the result.
To hell with "saving Serie A."
In front of a man's life, all that meant nothing.
Especially when that life might be slipping away right before your eyes.
The medical team sprinted onto the field. After a quick examination, they confirmed Zidane was still breathing.
It appeared to be brief unconsciousness from a severe head impact. In theory, it wasn't life-threatening... but in extreme cases, it could lead to prolonged coma—what's commonly called... a vegetative state.
Zidane was stretchered off.
The stadium fell completely silent.
Even when the match ended and the announcement came that France had defeated Italy 2–1 to reach the World Cup Final—no one celebrated.
That silence lasted until thirty minutes after the match, when news arrived from Munich University Hospital:
Zidane had regained consciousness. He was lucid, and aside from minor soft tissue bruising, he was fine!
In that moment, both French and Italian fans hugged and wept together.
Reportedly, Zidane's first words upon waking were:
"Damn you, Su Hang!"
Apparently, the two shared quite the grudge.
Meanwhile, Henry also underwent further medical checks.
So even though France had reached the final, their entire central spine—Zidane, Henry, and Vieira—was now injured and ruled out, or at best, doubtful for the final.
That news stirred wild thoughts among players of the other semifinal.
Portugal.
Spain.
These twin brothers of Iberia once again stood at a crossroads in history.
Win this match—defeat this rival—and the victor would lift the World Cup trophy!