Spain defeated Paraguay in the quarter final of the FIFA World Cup 2010 to book a semi final date with Germany. iSporter Praneet Mhatre analyses the performance of the Spainish team.
The curse has been lifted! One of the greatest footballing countries in the world has finally managed to enter the last four of the World Cup. They did not do it the pretty way, but I am not complaining. In fact, the bizarrely episodic nature of the game added some much needed spice to what looked to be developing into a dud of an encounter after a colourless first half.
Spain seem to have made a habit of doing just what is needed to somehow trudge into the next round. Once again, the team was nowhere close to the Euro 2008 winning side that scored goals for fun; in spite of the fact that there hasn't been a lot of change in personnel since then.
But the optimistic Spanish fans would like to look at things from a different point of view - their teams have played wonderful football in the last -god knows how many- tournaments, still somehow managing to get knocked out prematurely.
This, they would like to believe, is their time. The rub of the green is finally beginning to favour their team, and in big tournaments, lady luck is as important as your team's performance.
Coming back to the game, the first half was a positively drab affair. Spain couldn't even manage to get a single shot on target in the opening 45 minutes. But things suddenly heated up in the second period and how! Paraguay were awarded an obvious spot kick after Pique desperately tried to wrestle down Cardozo.
But Casillas, with some advice from Pepe Reina as it would later transpire, managed to not only save the ball from going in, but also set up a swift counter attack. And bam! We had another penalty at the opposite end!
Xabi Alonso's successful attempt was ruled out after the referee spotted some illegal encroachment in the penalty area. The former Liverpool man just couldn't handle the nerves in the ensuing attempt and sent an awful shot straight towards an inspired Justo Villar.
The action packed couple of minutes were too much for everyone, even silencing the otherwise endless nuisance of Vuvuzelas! Spain appeared to be the more inspired of the two sides, after the chaos finally settled down.
The game clinching goal came from a brilliantly crafted move that inevitably involved their midfield maestros Xavi and Iniesta. And who else but David Villa sent the ball in the back of the net, rightfully climbing ahead of everyone else in the race for the Golden Boot.
What is stopping Spain from flourishing?
They are just not playing like themselves! Alan Shearer summed it up nicely when answering a question about Fernando Torres - "May be it's his twin brother!" he said. That is how befuddling Spain have been. How else do you explain Xavi Hernandez miscuing a 5 yard pass, Fernando Torres drawing a blank game after game or Spain scraping their way with 1-0 victories!
The defense has been relatively better. But we have seen some scary moments with both Puyol and Pique getting beaten by pace, and rest assured that Mesut Ozil and company have seen them too!
What are they doing right?
In spite of everything mentioned in the above section, they are having the best World Cup in their history! They have not been half as fluid as Joaquim Lowe's side has been. Nor have they managed to net a lot of goals. But Vicente del Bosque's men are steadily moving ahead.
They have managed to play well enough to get past their opponents so far, and that is precisely what they will have to do against the Germans. Easier said than done though! David Villa has been the only bright spot of Spain's campaign so far. And an awful lot will depend on him in the semi finals.
In a nutshell, the only thing that Spain are doing right at the moment is to win games! But against an invincible looking German team, they will need to get everything else in place to do this one thing right.
The game against Paraguay was simply a continuation of what they did against Chile and Portugal. They retained possession like they always do, but had very little to show for all the passing. In all probability, things will be different against the Germans.
How they adapt to the situation will decide the fate of their campaign. Argentina looked fantastic throughout the tournament, but the Germans exposed their lack of alternative strategies and they fell apart like a house of cards.
Del Bosque, with all his bench strength, obviously has the options to choose the strategy he pleases - which is why I believe that Spain have a better chance of defeating Germany than any other team in this tournament.
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