Spain No Longer Strike Fear into Hearts of Opponents

Let’s not mince our words here—we’ve been humbled. The prospect of playing Spain, in the recent past, used to strike fear into the best international sides in the world. Nowadays, no one seems scared of us. Since a miserable World Cup, this is a Spain side that has lost four of the eight internationals it has played, though three of those defeats came in friendlies. People are saying... 

Vicente Del Bosque Has to Make Tough Choices If Spain Are to Rise Again

Spain has at its disposal, not just some of the world’s best players, but arguably some of the best of all time, to pick from. Unfortunately what it no longer has is the best team. Or a definite style. More than anything else in the country, La Roja restored pride to an economically battered nation and put the smile back onto the face of Spanish football. And now it’s over, and like it... 

Spain’s Golden Years May Never Return but There Is a Silva Lining for Del Bosque

It is impossible that Spain will reach the dizzy heights of the past six years ever again; they will never have the same players, the same urgencies—the perfect storm. But their easy 5-1 victory over Macedonia on Monday night showed the fans, the media, but principally the players and management themselves, that they are back on the right road again. Macedonia never looked like they would be... 

Argentina Revert to Form vs. Switzerland, but Lionel Messi Still the Trump Card

ARENA CORINTHIANS, SAO PAULO — After what looked like a marked improvement against Nigeria in their final group game, Argentina seemed to go back to their predictable, old ways against Switzerland on Tuesday in the round of 16. Too slow in their distribution of the ball and too static off it, Argentina certainly weren’t helped by a hard, bone-dry pitch—or the fact that everybody involved... 

Individual Focus on Rooney, Hodgson Hides Real Reasons for England World Cup Woe

I’m not sure Lewis Carroll knew a lot about football, but when he wrote in Through the Looking-Glass: “The rule is, jam tomorrow and jam yesterday—but never jam today,” he could have been describing England’s attitude to the national game. Never has a team embarked on a campaign for the biggest prize in football with less expected of it than this England... 

Talk of Spain’s Demise Is Extremely Premature

Mark Twain once wrote “the report of my death was an exaggeration.” Spanish football can claim the same. The realities are there for all to see. This may well be an ageing side, and the likes of Xavi Hernandez and Xabi Alonso are almost certainly going to—at least internationally—call it a day after this World Cup. Perhaps Daniel Carvajal, the young Real Madrid defender, could... 

Cristiano Ronaldo Has Won Our Respect, but He’ll Never Win Hearts Like Messi

Earlier this week I wrote about how important it is to have a combination of God-given talent, passion and luck to make it to the very top of the sporting tree (read more here). All of those factors were on display during Portugal’s breathtaking World Cup qualifying playoff against Sweden last night. Plus one more. The fact is that you can have everything it takes to be a top player—the... 

Luck? Poor Coaching? No, It’s Simple: England Just Don’t Have Great Players

I see that every time England have a bad game or there is a hiccup in qualification, a whole new debate arises about how best to produce success for the national team. First everyone looked to Spain for the answer, the secret recipe. Now everyone appears to be looking toward Belgium. A quick look at Belgium’s fantastic players makes it easy to understand why; Thibaut Courtois, Jan Vertonghen,... 

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