Tiki-taka finishes off The Italian Job !!!

Their economy is tumbling. Their debt is soaring. Their banks are in a sorrowful state. The confidence of bond investors continues to dip. The country is in tethers.

But all that did not prevent Spain from playing exemplary football of the highest level. All those worries were locked in a tight box and forgotten about on a day of footballing mania. A much-awaited Euro 2012 final between Spain and Italy beckoned - a final that held promise for both the economically bruised nations.

After a lot of speculation and deliberation, it was Cesc Fabregas who started up front for La Roja in the 'False No. 9' role. Spain coach Vicente del Bosque definitely had taken a risk, not putting up a full-fledged striker, but as it turned out, the risk paid sweet dividends.

Italy, treading on similar paths as Spain on the economic front, went with their usual formation putting up "Super Mario" and Antonio Cassano up front.

Spain began their play as was expected of them, getting into their passing rhythm quickly and dominating possession. A flurry of attacks early in the game from both sides saw the game balanced. But Spain had clearly driven home the point that they were not ready to be countered the way they were by Portugal. At times, when the tiki-taka of Spain was in full flow, it seemed as if Spain were playing a local U-14 team, who were getting introduced to the concept of football.

A sensational through-ball in the 14th minute unleashed Fabregas into the penalty box, and a tidy cross to David Silva, who headed home, put Spain ahead early on.

From then on, Italy never really recovered. Spain's runs into the penalty box became all too common. The finishing perhaps lacked the finesse that the injured David Villa could have provided, but Italy were being pushed back further. Attempts to counter La Roja on the break did not reap benefits, with the Spanish defence holding ground and the midfield intercepting many attempted passes.

A 1-0 lead seemed too insignificant for La Roja. A sensational through-ball by Xavi and a phenomenal run from behind the half-line by Jordi Alba set the platform to stretch the lead.  The latest addition to the Barcelona squad, Alba netted home sweetly in the 41st minute to end the first half with Spain very much in control.

Antonio Di Natale, who scored against Spain in their first match of Euro 2012, was brought on for the Azzurri in the second half. He made his presence felt almost immediately with a couple of shots either just scraping the net or testing Casillas. When an apparent handball by Leonardo Bonucci was waived off by referee Pedro Proenca, luck favoured the Azzurri.

On the other side, to provide further impetus to the Spanish attack, Pedro was brought in for score-opener David Silva. Short Silva perhaps lacked the physique to break through the Italian defence, when a couple of passes headed his way did have the potential to be at least shots on target, if not goals.

When Thiago Motta, who had come on as a substitute, had to be stretchered off close to the hour mark, 10-men Italy would have felt a chill run down their spine. With no substitutions left for Azzurri coach Cesare Prandelli, facing a fully energized squad that manipulates opposition defence and controls play using the famous tiki-taka football was undoubtedly a Herculean task. Prandelli, who had made trips to pilgrimages after Italy's progression in the competition, needed some divine intervention to break the midfield stronghold of La Roja.

Except win free kicks, some of which were undeserved, Mario Balotelli provided no valuable contribution to the Azzurri attack. "Super Mario" was just a puppet dancing to La Roja's tune.

In the final few minutes of the game, as Italy kept chasing shadows, substitutes Fernando Torres and Juan Mata put their names as well on the score-sheet, with late goals in the 84th and 88th minute respectively.

Torres, who also scored the winner against Germany in the Euro 2008 final, became the only player in the world to score in two finals of the European Championships.

Xavi, who provided the assist to Torres, also became the first player to provide two assists in a final.

Spain captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas became the first player ever in international football to win 100 matches for his country. He also set a new record of going 511 minutes without conceding a goal. Interestingly, Casillas conceded just 1 goal for La Roja in Euro 2012 in their first match against Italy.

Spain created history by becoming the first team to win 3 consecutive major international tournaments. They are also the first team to defend their Euro title, and have now equaled Germany's record of possessing 3 European titles. Spain's 4-0 victory is also the largest margin of victory in a Euro or World Cup final.

With so many records broken in 90 minutes, Spain's majesty on football now remains unquestionable. The supposedly "boring" or "lackadaisical" passing has proven effective. The critics have been silenced. Despite the economic problem back home, the country rejoiced heartily. No matter what happens to the Euro currency, whether it breaks or stays afloat, the European Champions are here to stay. Spanish football and tiki-taka are here to stay...

Portugal vs Spain Euro 2012 Review

Much had been said about the Euro 2012 semi-final between Portugal and Spain. It was time to act, time to decide the first finalist, time to manifest dominance in football and time to show to the world why so much had been said about this fixture.

Due to the absence of striker Helder Postiga, who is suffering an injury picked up in the quarter-final, Portugal started with Hugo Almeida up front, assisted by Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo, with the rest of the squad remaining the same. Spain, on the other hand, opted to go for a conventional fixed-role risk-averse strategy by putting Alvaro Negredo in charge of the onslaught, dropping Cesc Fabregas and Fernando Torres, both of whom have scored twice for La Roja in the competition.

All through the first half, both teams made one point very clear - they had no intention of letting the other go through without giving the other a good run for their money. Spain, as has been and is expected of them, began their usual tiki-taka football whenever they got even the minutest of spaces. One-touch passes abounded the midfield, but were not enough to put the ball in the Portuguese goal. Portugal, on the other hand, had clearly indicated that the passing superiority of La Roja would not perturb them. As a matter of fact, Portugal were the first to get a corner in the first 5 minutes. They pushed Spain behind and did not allow the attacking rhythm to set in, thanks largely to quick passing and swift runs by Moutinho, Nani and Ronaldo. They had also garnered crowd interest every time the ball reached Ronaldo, while cat-calls, boos and whistles echoed through the Donbass Arena when the possession switched sides. This could possibly be the cause of some lackadaisical passing from La Roja, allowing many interceptions by the closing-in Portuguese.

Spain had clearly been put on the back foot and Portugal continued to counter the play and create gaps and opportunities frequently. A booking for Sergio Ramos and Coentrao, a free kick at the end of the half and a header on target by Ramos, all happened in quick succession, but was still not enough to put something on the score-line. Spain seemed to be struggling a bit to find their menacing form and passing rhythm, while the Seleccao ensured that they controlled play as much as they could to dissuade Spain from barging into the Portuguese half. Despite all this, the first half did not really live up to the expectations, but an interesting watch lay ahead. Or so we hoped.

Fans in the stadium, viewers on TV and everywhere around the globe hoped for a second half that would bring out the best in both sides. Jordi Alba and Arbeloa tried to cut inside the Portuguese defence all through the first half and even in the second, but lack of creative play in the centre was not helping the Spanish cause. Alvaro Negredo, who hardly saw the ball in the first half, was quite rightly substituted by Fabregas just 8 minutes into the second half. This was quite justified considering that Bruno Alves, Portugal's central defender, seemed to have a one-point agenda - break Negredo, quite literally. Showing his supposed physical prowess over Negredo and later Fabregas seemed to Alves' priority. It seemed as if Seleccao coach Paulo Bento had placed Bruno Alves there for exactly that purpose !!

Bookings began to flood in the second half, with as many as 10 people on the ground booked. Tempers began to flare, and goal-scoring chances began to be missed with increasing regularity from both sides. Extra time seemed to beckon and it did. But judging by the work-rate of both, penalties seemed the highly likely mode to decide the outcome of the fixture.

A couple of quick passes by La Roja, Iniesta's shot on target deflected by Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patricio, Sergio Ramos' free-kick that just scraped over the crossbar, everything seemed to be pump up the adrenaline. As the final 15 minutes of play began, both teams upped their tempo. Fluid attacking by Spain and swift counter-attack by Portugal engulfed the second half of extra time, but neither side could get the breakthrough.

120 minutes of play had ended, but the first team to qualify for the final was yet to be decided. Penalties needed to be taken. After Xabi Alonso's penalty was saved, Portugal had a chance to take the lead, but Joao Moutinho's penalty had the same outcome. Iniesta and Pique scored for La Roja but Pepe and Nani were no different for the Seleccao. Sergio Ramos then came up with a perfect "Panenka" and found the net comfortably, but Bruno Alves hit the crossbar, thus putting Fabregas in control of scoring the winner for La Roja. Fabregas' penalty, I admit, had a bit of luck favouring him, but it got the job done and put Spain into the finals of Euro 2012.

The best or the worst part of the entire "penalties" episode was that penalty expert Cristiano Ronaldo saved himself for the fifth strike, perhaps because he thought he could handle the pressure, but he never even got a chance to test Casillas. Bruno Alves, the undisputed Flop of the Match (at least for me), denied Ronaldo the opportunity to take his penalty. Ronaldo had just lost the match without kicking !!!

I do feel for the Seleccao though. They played their hearts out. No doubt about that. Ronaldo, Moutinho, Pepe and Coentrao were simply outstanding. They threw everything they had at their Iberian rivals, but at the end of the day, it just wasn't enough. I, personally, am a huge fan of Fabio Coentrao, who has been phenomenal not only for Portugal throughout the European campaign, but also for Real Madrid.

Man of the Match Sergio Ramos was certainly laudable. His tackles proved crucial to thwart a couple of runs by Ronaldo & Co. and his "Panenka" penalty was a calming assurance of his ability to perform under pressure.

It does feel, at times, that football is 'unfair', especially under the backdrop of such performances and results. Nonetheless, it is as it is.

VAMOS ESPANA !!!