All-conquering Spain made it
back-to-back European Championships with a commanding 4-0 win over Italy on
Sunday. Vicente del Bosque's side set their attacking marker out early and were
at their imperious best as they took a 2-0 first-half lead via goals from David
Silva and Jordi Alba.
Substitutes Fernando Torres
and Juan Mata then added goals at the death to wrap up the victory.
History lesson
Spain wrote their names into the
history books with the win over Italy. Del Bosque's side became the first team
in history to successfully defend their European Championship crown, while they
also became the first European side to win three consecutive major tournaments,
following the 2010 World Cup win sandwiched in between. The debate will continue
as to whether they are the greatest team in history but statistics prove they
are better than the likes of the Brazil, Holland and West Germany sides of the
1970s and the French team of 1998 and 2000.
Men on a mission
In the build-up, Spain had claimed
to not have been bothered by the 'boring' tag which their critics had started
to sneer following a lack of end product to their passing game. But Del
Bosque's team began the final with a clear intent to make a statement. In the
opening 13 minutes Spain completed 103 passes out of 116 and then opened the
scoring via Silva. It was a fantastic start and set the tone for the rest of
the match.
Silva lining
Silva did not earn the praise of
the likes of Andrea Pirlo or team-mate Xavi at Euro 2012, but he took his
excellent form, which helped Manchester City to the Premier League title, into
the finals. Silva was involved in the most goals at Euro 2012. He scored two,
including one in the final, and assisted three. Also, only Torres and David
Villa (four) have now scored more goals than Silva for Spain at the Euros.
Importance of Headers
Silva scored the 22nd headed
goal of Euro 2012, a record tally in the history of the European Championship.
This could be taken as an indication of the importance of sides now playing
with three-pronged attacks and more forwards in wide areas to supply crosses.
The accuracy of set-plays throughout the tournament has been another factor.
No way through
With yet another clean sheet,
Spain's defence extended a fine record of not having conceded a goal in almost
1000 minutes of action in major tournament knockout games, a streak which
amazingly started in the quarter finals of Euro 2008. It also means they had
the best defensive record at Euro 2012 with only one goal conceded - against the
Italians in their first match of the group stage.
Pirlo tamed
Pirlo had been the scourge of
Germany and England in the previous two knock-out rounds but could not have the
same influence on this game. Spain gave the Juventus midfielder no time on the ball,
sometimes swamping him in numbers, so he was forced deep and often had to pass
backwards. Tellingly, the 33-year-old's most significant contribution to this
game was tackling Andres Iniesta in his own box in the first half as the
Spanish midfielder looked to score.
Out of luck
Italy were always going to be up
against it, but ran out of luck as the game wore on. They were already two
goals down by the time Thiago Motta was carried away on a stretcher after
damaging his hamstring. With three changes having already been made, they were
forced to see out the final half-an-hour with 10 men. They did well to keep
Spain at bay until the final six minutes, but a late flurry was always on the
cards. A four-goal defeat was harsh on the Azzurri, but they can be proud of
their efforts at a tournament in which few expected them to mount a challenge.
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