Stefan Lovgren

COLOGNE, Germany - Watching Zinedine Zidane trudge off the field in what could be his last-ever match, substituted in the 87th minute of France’s disappointing draw with South Korea, was almost too painful to endure for those of us who rate the midfield maestro as one of the game’s greatest ever.

Late in the second half, Zidane drew a yellow card for unnecessarily shoving a Korean defender. It was his second yellow in the tournament, ruling him out of France’s game against Togo. That gave the 1998 winners a pause before beating Togo on Friday to advance.

That means Zidane, who is set to retire after the World Cup, will return for second-round action.

Yet the harsh truth is that France would probably be better off without him.

The former World Footballer of the Year, who scored two goals in France’s 3-0 romp over Brazil in the 1998 World Cup final, has lost that special ability to create space for himself where none could possibly be found. Most of his passes still find their destination, only the destination is usually a few yards to the side rather than through the opposing defense.

But as long as Zidane is in the side, France will build its play around him.

Therein lies the problem.

Because if there is one thing this World Cup has shown, it is the danger of accommodating aging stars instead of putting one’s faith in a new generation of talent.

Zidane, Materazzi banned, fined for incident Borges: Zidane lucky he doesn't play in U.S. Opinion: U.S. has 2 coaching options | Vote Arena out after 8 years as U.S. coach Best XI: top players, your picks for World Cup   Slide shows: Hairdos |   Damsels |   Beckham   Images: Highlights, more | MORE COVERAGE

Rewind four years to the last World Cup. France, the reigning champions, and Argentina, a pre-tournament favorite, had both suffered shocking eliminations from the opening round.

While France chose to keep faith with its aging squad, which proceeded to put in an underwhelming performance at the 2004 European Championship before barely qualifying for this World Cup, Argentina cleaned house. Playmaker Juan Sebastian Veron was put out to pasture, and the reins were handed to diminutive midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme.

Here we are, four years later. With France on the brink of another unthinkable elimination, Riquelme is the undisputed king of an Argentina team that has eclipsed Brazil as the tournament favorites after putting in what may be one of the greatest-ever World Cup performances in its 6-0 second-match demolition of Serbia and Montenegro.

Brazil is also struggling because of its reluctance to let go of one of its fading stars: Ronaldo. The Real Madrid striker, who must be the oldest 29-year-old ever, is obviously out of shape and out of form.

Super Bowl slide shows EPA   Giant victory party See images of fans packing the Manhattan streets to celebrate the New York Giants’ Super Bowl win. AP   Super Bowl XLII Take a visual tour of the scene before, during and after the New York Giants' Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots. Reuters High-def views of University of Phoenix Stadium Experience high-def interactive pictures of the site of Super Bowl XLII Win McNamee / Reuters   A man named Brady Take a visual tour of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s life, both on and off the field.   Hot QBs, hot times See images of NFL quarterback stars such as Tom Brady, Tony Romo, who are as popular off the field as they are on.

But Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira named Ronaldo in his starting lineup months ago, and he’s not going to change his mind. Parreira got a small reprieve when Ronaldo scored twice against Japan, but that was a game in which Brazil could have scored countless goals.

The problem is, Brazil already has a Ronaldo. He’s called Adriano. The two strikers are too similar to play together in the same lineup, which they’ve done with no success in Brazil’s first two games here.

Whenever Ronaldo has been substituted for the fleet-footed Robinho, however, the Brazilian attack has gone from good to lethal.

The Brazilian press has blasted Ronaldo’s performance, and Parreira is clearly getting annoyed at the criticism directed at the striker. “Ronaldo has improved in relation to the first game,” he said with a dismissive shrug after Brazil’s unconvincing 2-0 win against Australia. “He is getting fit now, but he needs more games.”

Parreira would do well to take a page out of Spain coach Luis Aragones’s playbook on how to handle old stars. Aragones, 68, lived up to his nickname “El Sabio” (“the wise man”) by doing the unthinkable at the start of the cup: benching Raúl, the team captain and one of the most prolific goal scorers the game has ever seen.

In his place, exciting new stars Fernando Torres and David Villa have sparkled. The entire Spanish team looks well-balanced and confident of shedding its image as perennial underachievers. Meanwhile, Raúl has accepted his substitute role.

But he still has an important part to play. With Spain down 0-1 at halftime against Tunisia, Aragones called on his captain to come on and provide his team with much-needed width in the second half. It turned out to be a masterstroke as Raúl poached the tying score that set Spain on the course to an impressive 3-1 victory.

Aging stars can still shine, as long as they don’t blind the team.

MORE FROM SOCCER

Soccer Section Front

American fans are growing bored with Beckham New Chelsea coach debuts against Sounders FC   Chelsea manager sounds confident Terry staying Man U scraps match after Jakarta hotel blasts U.S. playing short-handed against Panama Barcelona has initial agreement for Ibrahimovic Slideshow: The life of Becks, on and off the field Ferguson expects Rooney to carry Man United attack Tutu says 2010 World Cup chance for unity MLS scores, schedules, standings, more Soccer Section Front   Add Soccer headlines to your news reader: