Spain reign

Sunday, 11/07/2010

Are they Arsenal in disguise? Remember when it was always "To the Arsenal 1-0"? After that opening defeat to Switzerland, it's been Spain 1-0 all the way through the 2010 World Cup finals.

So it was quite fitting that it was Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas who came on as a sub and laid on the winning goal for Iniesta. Why wasn't he on earlier? Once the midfield maestro was brought into action Spain looked far more dangerous.

I'm glad it wasn't a penalty shoot-out. It might make for high drama but those lucky dip penalties are no way to decide a major final. It was far more fitting for Iniesta to score a well-taken winner in extra-time.

In a game dominated by yellow cards - yet still admirably policed by Premier League referee Howard Webb, who only made one major mistake, giving a goal kick instead of a corner - we didn't see the true classy football both Holland and Spain are capable of. We didn't quite get the final we hoped for.

Yet in Spain the World Cup has a rightful new owner for the next year. The European Champions have often been praised in the past for having a great squad and yet failing to produce the goods. Having lifted the trophy at Euro 2008 and now taken on and beaten the world in 2010 they have reached their full potential. The best team at the tournament did win.

And a word of praise too for the Dutch who have so often fallen apart much earlier in tournaments. Sadly for the Netherlands there was no case of three times lucky. It was three times and yet again the bridesmaid.

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