Spain has always entered World Cup's as favourites, but disappointed.
This year has been no exception, but rather been hailed everywhere as Spain's World Cup after they apparently broke their curse by winning the Euro 2008, and obviously has one of the best and see-worthy teams in the world, that has cruised through qualification and friendlies with entertaining and technically skilled football, something that is more and more absent from national football teams than ever before.
With this, Spain undoubtfully remains a favourite, in spite of the mishap today of losing 0-1 to Switzerland. The Swiss victory was perhaps healthy for a Spanish national team that has historically never handled the pressure of expectation well, and who too obviously ignored the weariness that most Spaniards do have about their team: like a Spanish friend of mine said, "I don't think there was a single Spaniard who, deep down, didn't know this was going to happen. We've been beaten too many times". This was obvious after years and years of disappointments (where the Euro 2008 is the sole exception to the rule!).
In spite of this, Spanish press and even many of the players have been very guilty of overestimating themselves, by talking more about Portugal or Brazil in the last-16, rather than actually trying to get there past Chile, Switzerland and Honduras. In that sense, Spain's loss was refreshing, and may in the end do them good by reminding them that one has to play one match at a time, and that all teams are good!
Nevertheless, in a footballing sense, it is a pity.
As any football fan will know, it will be much, MUCH more fun to see a team that plays good football like Spain go through, than such a defensive bore as Switzerland, whom I personally remember for one of the most boring matches I have seen in my life during the last World Cup. In a tournament where most teams have been defensive and afraid to lose, Spain eliminated will be a huge loss, and just for that, Spain should go through.
That said, congratulations to all Swiss fans for this victory - they have every reason to be proud and to celebrate!
Cheers!
3 comments:
Loved this picture: http://www.worldcupblog.org/world-cup-2010/photo-chocolate-beats-paella.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bna%2Fworldcupblog+(World+Cup+2010+Blog)
Do you realize that the only 2 games spain has lost in the last 2 years have been in south africa?
no, hadn't thought about that, but yeah...
Hmmm, is it the air? Does it augur well for Spain...?
I really hope that Spain and Chile go through in the group (although I surely choose Chile if I have to choose one of the two...)
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