Spain debuted its status as queen of the world against a team with an empty stomach, which always runs faster than those who have a full stomach. Spain also debuted its reign at Wembley, one of those mythical places that increase the brilliance of everything that happens there. Spain debuted its crown, in short, in style. And the fact is that England put everything they have, which is not little, to beat the champion, but they were not able to. And it wasn't because Spain has returned along the same path they took on July 19 with the World Cup in hand. This is a great team led by Luis de la Fuente, capable of taking a game forward, against a great team, missing half a dozen very clear chances and having a hard time due to the push of a good, great, rival.
As happened in the United States, the team wins and then asks. Yesterday they took the lead almost before it started, then they were shaken badly at the end of the first half and almost lost everything in a regrettable start to the second. But Kane missed the penalty and the world number one woke up. And of course, when the number one in the world wakes up, that whole world stands firm. Ladies and gentlemen, the champion is still here.
Spain went into the break losing without really knowing how. It's not that he was much better than the rival, that's not it either, and in fact for a quarter of an hour he succumbed to the courageous push of the English, but a cold look at that first half makes it difficult to explain that result. Apart from taking the lead right away, you can count up to five fairly clear options, especially two of them. Both in Ferran's boots, and both identical: a controlled ball, on the run, only against the goalkeeper. Both failed.
In a game of this caliber, that is definitive. Then you can enter into the analysis of whether Spain got carried away by the bravery of Tuchel's team, whether or not it may be that a corner in favor ends in a goal for the opponent or that an interior player does not follow his side or a lot of other things. But on nights like this, having two heads-up like the ones Ferran had and wasting them is almost definitive. The boy who scored the goal in the World Cup final showed again yesterday that he is much more effective when he doesn't have to think. At the first touch, whatever you want. If you have to choose, bad.
Apart from Ferran's, Olmo had another, and Lamine, scorer of the goal after an unforgivable mistake by Guéhi, another, and also Fabián. Spain, in short, the world champions, had several chances and barely scored once. With much less, England made two, going to the refreshment ahead on a night with previous news. Luis de la Fuente had made three changes compared to the eleven in the World Cup final. Actually four. Two mandatory, one that was going to be Eric García for Marcos Llorente and another that was Pubill for the Barça player, with knee discomfort during the warm-up. And then two adjustments. Nico for Baena, recovering the initial philosophy of this team, inapplicable during the World Cup, and Ferran for Oyarzabal, this move, a priori, quite logical given the start of the season for one (Ferran, a plane) and another (Oyarzabal, with doubts). And, it is written, everything turned upside down, but then it went wrong.
And it could have gone a lot worse because at the beginning of the second half, there, they were overwhelmed by England, who had a penalty (from Rodri to Bellingham). Luckily for Spain, Kane missed it. And there Spain was resurrected. England is a team with terrible midfield potential forward, but very weak at the back. If Lamine's goal had been born from a rudeness by a central defender, the tie was from another rudeness, this one from the left back, both Guéhi and O'Reilly, from City. Baena was the scorer of that goal that changed the dynamics of the match, now with Oyarzabal and the Atlético player on the field instead of Nico and Ferran. By the way, just before that tie Lamine had made another very clear mistake, and there were now half a dozen gross mistakes.
