Euro 2012: The Reign of Spain
Spain became the first football team in history to win three consecutive major international tournaments, when they beat Italy 4-0 in the Euro 2012 final on Sunday night.
“We’re talking about a great generation of footballers … this is a great era for Spanish football” said Spain coach, Vicente del Bosque, after a victory which saw them add to their Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010 triumphs.
Stung by criticism throughout their Euro 2012 campaign that their football was boring and negative, the Spanish turned on the style in the final and earned the praise of numerous football pundits and fans.
Goals by David Silva and Jordi Alba, either side of an Italian dominated period, meant Spain went into the half time break in full control of their second successive Euro final. The second half started with the theme of the first, with Italy pressing forward at any opportunity afforded them. However, an unlucky injury to Italian third substitute, Thiago Motta, in the 56th minute meant that Italy would have to continue the match with 10 men.
This proved the opportunity that Spain needed as they took control of the game and passed the Italians into submission. A tactic which saw the World champions score twice in the last ten minutes, through substitutes Fernando Torres and Juan Mata, to cap an exciting end to a dominant performance and crown them still the best team in Europe.
In : Football