New Delhi: There are many around the world who will hope that the Euro 2024 heads ‘home’ and they won’t be wrong in that either. Any side that manages to come through the gruelling group stage and the knockout round, as England have, deserves support.
But if you are a neutral fan, then it is very likely that you are in Spain’s corner. There are two main reasons for that.
One, for the kind of football that La Roja have played in the tournament. They’ve been the side to watch — fun while going forward, exciting on the press and they have a tremendous squad headlined by some young talent that has the world asking for more.
Spain came out of a tough group that included Italy, Croatia and Albania, before getting past Georgia, Germany and France to reach the final. And they did it by compiling a record of six wins, already the most at a single edition of the competition.
Football has so many ups and downs and that was witnessed in the semi-final against France. The French took the early lead but the manner in which Spain fought back showed that this is a side that has plenty of steel too. It’s not all a show, not all the time.
“The worries I had about this Spanish team,” said former England defender Micah Richards to BBC, “they answered them against France – how they can adapt to situations and when you have pace on the wings you always have a chance. They look really balanced and I think they are favourites.”
Two, for the kind of football it can inspire other nations to play. Trends are often dictated by the winners and that is why Spain, rather than England, might get coaches and teams to re-evaluate the idea of winning football.
Tournament football is often about minimising risks. While that works well for teams, it can often be a frustrating watch for fans. England’s football, in that sense, is old school tournament football. Spain, on the other hand, have taken the risks and lived to tell the tale.
They tend to switch between 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 at the drop of a hat and are a genuine joy to watch while going forward but, according to Opta, they have conceded shots worth 1.09 expected goals (xG) per game at Euro 2024, which puts them bang in the middle of the 24 teams who competed at the competition.
So, they aren’t perfect but they aren’t trying to be that either. They still aren’t at the level of the Spain teams that dominated world football between 2006 and 2012 but, on current form, they are probably the best team in Europe and they have got here by playing a very direct and aggressive style of play.
Their press has been superb. When they lose the ball, they don’t just sit back and wait. England will have far lesser space to work with than they were afforded by Netherlands. La Roja rank top of all teams for high turnovers (66), shot-ending high turnovers (13) and goal-ending high turnovers (2).
“They’ve got everything you need to be successful and that’s the reason they’ve won every single game at this tournament,” assessed former England striker Alan Shearer while speaking to the BBC.
A win will continue to push Spain to keep playing this kind of football and it will be interesting to see where this path can eventually take them. A defeat, on the other hand, might just put a handbrake where none exists at the moment. It may not lead to a full-scale revision but a few doubts will perhaps creep in and the footballing world, often throttled by defensive tactics, can do without that now.
“Football,” as Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano once wrote, “is an art form, a dance of joy and agony.” And if Spain win, there will be just a little more joy in the room and a little less agony. Who can complain about that… other than England perhaps?
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