Spanish Inquisition: Five Reasons Why Spain Will Conquer England Again
stonejah said
01:22 02/10 2009
England and Spain have met 21 times in official FIFA matches over the course of history, the very first encounter ending 4-3 to the hosts in Madrid. That said, the English didn't have to wait long for revenge: two years later, in London, the Three Lions put seven past Spain with just one in reply.
Since then the English have enjoyed the bulk of the joy, managing eleven wins to Spain's seven, with two other matches ending in draws. (If we want to get technical, one of the eleven victories was a draw as well, with England prevailing 4-2 on penalties in the 1996 European Championships.)
In recent times, though, Spain have had the best of it, winning the last two friendlies between the sides. In 2004 an Asier del Horno goal gave Spain a 1-0 win in Madrid, albeit with the English contingent upset by the racist abuse from the stands; three years later Andres Iniesta silenced the 58,000 fans at Old Trafford with a second-half winner.
Can the Spaniards make it three in a row in Seville? I think that they can, and here are five reasons why:
1) England lack the attack: I argued prior to Euro 2008 that Spain's weak link was the central defence, and in this regard little has changed. Actually, there is one development: Carles Puyol, probably the best of the bunch, is set to miss Wednesday's match, and thus it'll be two of Gerard Pique, Raul Albiol, Juanito, Carlos Marchena, or even Sergio Ramos. In other words, it's unlikely to be a first choice pairing.
But here's what they could be up against: Peter Crouch and Gabriel Agbonlahor; a mid-table target man and a forward that, while pacey and exciting, is virtually untried at this level. Crouch has an excellent goalscoring record at international level, but when one looks at the kind of sides he nets against, a pattern emerges: Uruguay, Hungary, Jamaica (3), Trinidad and Tobago, Greece (2), Andorra (2), FYR Macedonia, Estonia, Austria... suddenly his one strike against Croatia during European qualifying looks a bit less impressive. Wayne Rooney is out; Emile Heskey is injured; Carlton Cole is unlikely to start. It's hardly the stuff of nightmares, is it?
2) Lack of midfield width is not a problem: It's certainly true that Spain have some wide talents. Albert Riera isn't doing too badly; Santi Cazorla, while off form, still has some pedigree. But the player whose place out on the wing seems to be the most solid - David Silva - is ironically probably the least 'wide' of the lot. His is a style of play that sees him drift inside more often than not and, if Spain lose possession, this can see his area of the pitch susceptible to the counter-attack. However, Joan Capdevila generally plays a very reserved role for La Furia against the stronger sides, and that will be the same here; out on the right, Ashley Young's pace could be a problem, but as mentioned above, the chances of the England attackers being able to take regular, incisive advantage of this weakness is slim.
Above all, though, is the fact that the central mode of attack is a tried and tested one for Spain. Silva will cut in, Cazorla can cross the entire pitch, Riera offers something different: all told, it is a style of football that England does not share, and could be all the more successful for it. And don't forget about Sergio Ramos...
3) Spain do not lack the attack: It is a crude comparison, but one that speaks absolute volumes. David Villa and Fernando Torres versus the aforementioned Crouch-Agbonlahor duo. Now, it is possible that only one will play, and that Spain will line up 4-1-4-1 with Marcos Senna in the anchor role and Villa on his own. But having a world-class forward on the bench, not on the pitch, is a form of ammunition in itself, and whatever happens there will always be plenty of invention from midfield in the form of, say, Andres Iniesta.
4) Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney are injured: If there is one Englishman who would give Senna a sleepless night on Tuesday, it's Gerrard. However, the Liverpool captain is going to miss out on this one, and just in time, too: with him recently playing as something resembling a 'second striker', the weak English striking line would be augmented by his presence several-fold. As it stands, Frank Lampard saves his best form for club level, and Iker Casillas is surely the equal of his long range shots. As for Rooney, one need only think back to the 'metatarsal fever' that so engulfed the nation of England during his last severe bout of injury to know just how key he is to this side. Without him they suffer.
5) Most key players are on form: Well, they are. Take Xavi and Iniesta. The Barcelona pair are both key cogs in the Blaugrana machine that is churning its way through the Liga, and if they can bring even 80% of that form with them to Seville then England had better be prepared. Iker Casillas is putting his gaffe-ridden start to the season well and truly behind him; Raul Albiol is really growing into his role... the list continues.
It is true that Sergio Ramos and Marcos Senna - both completely key to Spain's Euro 2008 challenge - have had better form in their lives, but in the latter's case in particular there is always a deputy in the form of Xabi Alonso. In short, those key players that are not on form have plenty of support, and those that are have plenty of talent. They're not the kings of Europe for nothing...
Since then the English have enjoyed the bulk of the joy, managing eleven wins to Spain's seven, with two other matches ending in draws. (If we want to get technical, one of the eleven victories was a draw as well, with England prevailing 4-2 on penalties in the 1996 European Championships.)
In recent times, though, Spain have had the best of it, winning the last two friendlies between the sides. In 2004 an Asier del Horno goal gave Spain a 1-0 win in Madrid, albeit with the English contingent upset by the racist abuse from the stands; three years later Andres Iniesta silenced the 58,000 fans at Old Trafford with a second-half winner.
Can the Spaniards make it three in a row in Seville? I think that they can, and here are five reasons why:
1) England lack the attack: I argued prior to Euro 2008 that Spain's weak link was the central defence, and in this regard little has changed. Actually, there is one development: Carles Puyol, probably the best of the bunch, is set to miss Wednesday's match, and thus it'll be two of Gerard Pique, Raul Albiol, Juanito, Carlos Marchena, or even Sergio Ramos. In other words, it's unlikely to be a first choice pairing.
But here's what they could be up against: Peter Crouch and Gabriel Agbonlahor; a mid-table target man and a forward that, while pacey and exciting, is virtually untried at this level. Crouch has an excellent goalscoring record at international level, but when one looks at the kind of sides he nets against, a pattern emerges: Uruguay, Hungary, Jamaica (3), Trinidad and Tobago, Greece (2), Andorra (2), FYR Macedonia, Estonia, Austria... suddenly his one strike against Croatia during European qualifying looks a bit less impressive. Wayne Rooney is out; Emile Heskey is injured; Carlton Cole is unlikely to start. It's hardly the stuff of nightmares, is it?
2) Lack of midfield width is not a problem: It's certainly true that Spain have some wide talents. Albert Riera isn't doing too badly; Santi Cazorla, while off form, still has some pedigree. But the player whose place out on the wing seems to be the most solid - David Silva - is ironically probably the least 'wide' of the lot. His is a style of play that sees him drift inside more often than not and, if Spain lose possession, this can see his area of the pitch susceptible to the counter-attack. However, Joan Capdevila generally plays a very reserved role for La Furia against the stronger sides, and that will be the same here; out on the right, Ashley Young's pace could be a problem, but as mentioned above, the chances of the England attackers being able to take regular, incisive advantage of this weakness is slim.
Above all, though, is the fact that the central mode of attack is a tried and tested one for Spain. Silva will cut in, Cazorla can cross the entire pitch, Riera offers something different: all told, it is a style of football that England does not share, and could be all the more successful for it. And don't forget about Sergio Ramos...
3) Spain do not lack the attack: It is a crude comparison, but one that speaks absolute volumes. David Villa and Fernando Torres versus the aforementioned Crouch-Agbonlahor duo. Now, it is possible that only one will play, and that Spain will line up 4-1-4-1 with Marcos Senna in the anchor role and Villa on his own. But having a world-class forward on the bench, not on the pitch, is a form of ammunition in itself, and whatever happens there will always be plenty of invention from midfield in the form of, say, Andres Iniesta.
4) Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney are injured: If there is one Englishman who would give Senna a sleepless night on Tuesday, it's Gerrard. However, the Liverpool captain is going to miss out on this one, and just in time, too: with him recently playing as something resembling a 'second striker', the weak English striking line would be augmented by his presence several-fold. As it stands, Frank Lampard saves his best form for club level, and Iker Casillas is surely the equal of his long range shots. As for Rooney, one need only think back to the 'metatarsal fever' that so engulfed the nation of England during his last severe bout of injury to know just how key he is to this side. Without him they suffer.
5) Most key players are on form: Well, they are. Take Xavi and Iniesta. The Barcelona pair are both key cogs in the Blaugrana machine that is churning its way through the Liga, and if they can bring even 80% of that form with them to Seville then England had better be prepared. Iker Casillas is putting his gaffe-ridden start to the season well and truly behind him; Raul Albiol is really growing into his role... the list continues.
It is true that Sergio Ramos and Marcos Senna - both completely key to Spain's Euro 2008 challenge - have had better form in their lives, but in the latter's case in particular there is always a deputy in the form of Xabi Alonso. In short, those key players that are not on form have plenty of support, and those that are have plenty of talent. They're not the kings of Europe for nothing...
agree or dis agree?