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World Cup: Golden oldies make a Cup comeback

France's Zinedine Zidane, left, David Beckham of England, center, and Portugal's Luis Figo have upstaged the bright young things at Germany 2006 with performances that have forced critics to eat their words. PHOTOS: AP

Anyone battling a mid-life crisis only needs to watch the World Cup.

Plenty of people have been written off as washed up, only to play as if still in their prime -- Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo and David Beckham for example.

At the same time, many of those so-called prodigies are already watching the games on television.

Ronaldo was not only supposed to be too old and creaky at 29, even Brazil's president openly worried the once "Phenomenal One" was too fat and flabby for World Cup duty. Yet here the Real Madrid striker is, leading the charge of those over-the-hill veterans.

Turns out they are suddenly at the top of their game, looking down on all those young challengers.

Ronaldo scored three goals in his last two matches to become the World Cup's most prolific striker ever with 15 goals in three World Cups.

"He is again on top of every player in the world," Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira said.

Zidane is close behind. The 34-year-old midfielder is fighting off retirement with every game he plays for France, vowing to end his competitive career after the World Cup. Some soccer fans will be hoping he reaches the final so his skills will be on display for three more games.

Zidane had already retired from international soccer, but decided to give it a final go when it was evident his country was struggling without him in qualifying. He didn't have a good first round, and soon enough the criticism about age and immobility popped up. Yet he silenced everybody by setting up the decider, then scoring a spectacular goal to seal a 3-1 win over Spain.

He will now face Ronaldo and Brazil in the quarterfinals.

"You know what Zizou's influence can be. We're happy for him that he's 34 and in the 90th minute he still had the legs to score," France coach Raymond Domenech said.

More impressive is that Ronaldo and Zidane are forwards, a position that depends on leg speed and the sudden burst of energy -- two qualities that are all too often the first casualties of decline. On top of that, the physical quality and endurance of defenders has taken a major leap forward over the past decade, forcing them to stay even with, or outpace, their pursuers.

Even if the speed is no longer there, other qualities can still prevail. Beckham was knocked as too old, too slow. At 31, he may be a reduced force, but he is still the best at free kicks.

When his younger teammates wilted in the afternoon heat against a mediocre Ecuador team, England once again turned to Beckham. With a masterful free kick, he put England in the quarter-finals.

"He'd been getting hammered in the papers and in the media by various different people, and he scores a goal. That's his way of answering back," England defender Rio Ferdinand said.

Added midfielder Steven Gerrard: "The criticism he got before the game helped us because he went out with a point to prove."

Now Beckham will face another one of the game's senior citizens when England face off with Portugal tomorrow.

At 33, Figo's lightning speed has dulled. Some critics claimed they no longer knew if they saw him live on television or in slo-mo. But Portugal wouldn't be making its first appearance in the quarterfinals since 1966 if not for his dazzling play against the Netherlands.

The Dutch had a pair of 22-year-old wingers in Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie, but neither were any match for the elder Figo.

"Figo is a charismatic figure. He's a tremendously important player for us," Portugal midfielder Francisco Costinha said.

Italy could say the same about captain Fabio Cannavaro. The 32-year-old has been one of Italy's top players so far, with the defense conceding only one goal -- and an own-goal, at that. Cannavaro is playing in his third World Cup, and his 97 caps are the most on Italy's roster.
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