My Beloved Spain

Spain once again tragically crashed out of a tournament and in doing so, plunged a proud nation into sorrow. However, this time, the sorrow and disbelief is tinged with a touch of satisfaction, and hope for the future. Unlike past occasions, the Spanish public and media were fully supporting their team. In fact, according to Phil Ball, never have the Spaniards stood as one behind their football team in the quarter of a century he has spent in Spain. Luis Aragones must surely be given credit for selecting and guiding a skilled, youthful team to the country's best world cup performance since 1950. Yes they've reached the last 8 a few times whereas they crashed out in the second round this time, but their performances have captivated the imagination of a world audience. At the start of every tournament, it is customary to question whether Spain will finally perform to expected standards, usually with a hint of sarcasm. In Germany 2006, there was BELIEF, not just amongst Spaniards, but amongst the worldwide media and public.

This is what made it even more bitter for the players to lose the way they did. All of the Spanish squad grew up watching the national team jump from failure to failure; none of them were around in the glory days of di Stefano. Now, they were finally a part of a team which could seriously dream of winning. But it was not to be. The tears of the young Spaniards were a powerful reminder that it takes more than youthful exuberance and eyecatching elegance to succeed at the top level. The Spanish trio of Fabregas, Xavi and Alonso were schoolboys compared to Zidane, Vieira and Makelele, both in terms of age and tactical nous. Whilst the Spanish midfielders possessed greater speed, alacrity and combined skill on the ball, the French easily outdid them in strength, tenacity and grit which often counts for more in world cups. How often have the darlings of the tournament lost in tragic circumstances- Puskas's magnificent Magyars in '54, Cruyff's Orange army in '74 and the brilliant Brazilian team led by Socrates in '82 being prime examples. Once again, history repeated itself (pun not intended....initially).

For me, just like the Spanish public, this world cup was a huge triumph for Spain. In years of following Spanish football, never have I felt that the team has done justice to its incredible potential. Finally, Spain have shown the world that they can play, and that the quality of the Spanish league is not due to South American stars playing in Spain. Finally, Spain has been able to accept a defeat on the world stage. Finally, Spain exit a tournament without the tag of chokers, for losing to the old master Zizu is no disgrace. Finally, Spain have hope for the future, with the average age of the team 24, and the majority of the star performers being under the average age.

2010 cannot come soon enough for the Spaniards; the likes of Torres, Fabregas, Reyes, Villa, Xavi and Iniesta with four years of European experience, will be at the peak of their game. Of course, expectations will be higher than ever, but they will learn from this experience and come prepared. I am making an early prediction that Spain will be a contender in four years time!!


In other matches, Italy thumped Ukraine. Marcelo Lippi has proven to be a shrewd tactician. He has switched between catenaccio and a more free-flowing game befitting the skill level of his players expertly. Against Australia and Czech Republic, teams who he knew would come forward willingly, he sat back and absorbed pressure and only attacked on the counter. Whereas against the unpredictable Ghanaians in the first match, he attacked with intent. The USA game was an aberration due to disciplinary reasons. And last night, once again he adapted his play superbly. Ukraine are a confidence team, that is, the longer they stay in the game the better they become, the more self-belief they accrue and the stronger their attack becomes. This was demonstrated cleearly in the group games against Spain and Tunisia. Spain hit hard early and demoralized the debutants. After this, they controlled the game and ripped Ukraine to shreds. Lippi adopted the same philosophy and Italy came out with attacking intent. The early goal put the game beyond Ukraine with 2 2nd half goals sealing the victory. Despite Ukraine creating plenty of opportunities, because they conceded early, every Buffon save weakened them. Italy will have a tougher task against Germany, who rode on luck and home support to defeat the unfortunate Argentines.

In a perplexing display, Germany started the match in a sombre mood, allowing Argentina to enjoy 65% of the possession. The last time this happened, Serbia were flayed 6-0. To their credit, the German defence, which I have criticized without restraint, held firm. The first piece of misfortune for the Argentines was that they scored early in the 2nd half. This roused Germany from its slumber with nearly 40 minutes still to play. The second instance of bad luck came when keeper Abbondanzieri picked up an injury and was substituted by Leo Franco who had not played a match for over 6 weeks. Germany eventually equalized through Klose (this wasnt Franco's fault, no keeper would've stopped Klose's close range header) and took the game into extratime. Argentina's next unlucky turn came when their normally calm unfazed manager Pekerman made two rash substitutions. He replaced Crespo with Cruz, who is slower and not as predatory as the man he replaced; a bizarre choice. Then, even more bizarrely he replaced playmaker Riquelme with Cambiasso and stranded Messi and Aimar on the bench. To protect a lead by bringing on a tall player and a defensive midfielder is pure folly against a rampant Germany with vociferous home support. No doubt that his keeper's injury caught Pekerman unprepared, but his decision to take off his two most likely sources of goals and two penalty-takers proved costly in the end. Extratime never looked like yielding a goal with both teams, the Germans more so, looking for a shootout.

While Ayala's penalty miss was a surprise, Cambiasso never looked like scoring. He approached with trepidation and poked a limp shot into Lehmann's eager hands. The Germans, in contrast, stepped up with confidence and did not give Leo Franco a chance, though I do feel Abbondanzieri might have kept Argentina in the contest a bit longer. Neuville and Ballack exuded confidence whilst Podolsky, potentially a weak link, converted his penalty nonchalantly. Borowski unhesitatingly slammed home what proved to be the winner. Lehmann anticipated correctly on four out of four occasions, got a touch three out of four and saved two out of four. A fine individual effort in the likeness of Oliver Kahn, the legend he has replaced in the German team.

So a Germany-Italy semifinal awaits us. While its hard to tip against Germany barnstorming to the finish line in Berlin, Italy have all the qualities required to make the final. A tough defence, willpower and nerve to absorb long periods of pressure, and an incredibly powerful and often underestimated strike force. A difficult match to predict in my opinion. My only fear is that it could become a dull, uninspiring affair. The Italians certainly have it in their hands as to what sort of entertainment this one will provide. If they close ranks from the outset, then go to sleep and set your alarm clocks to get up in two hour's time for the penalty shootout.......