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After winning the last three international competitions they have competed in, and in style, it is hard not to earmark Spain as the favourites – right from the beginning. The only international trophy to have eluded this lot of Spanish footballers is the Confederations Cup, somewhat surprising.
Often labelled a waste of time which robs players of a well-deserved summer spent on the silky sands of Ibiza, the Confederations Cup is more or less an exclusive party before the main event. Of course, participating are the hosts, in addition to the bigshots from each part of the world as well as the biggest shot of them all – the ones that rule the Earth – the World Cup holders. In this edition, we will see players from countries like Brazil, Tahiti, Nigeria, Japan, Italy, Mexico and Uruguay all pit their footballing talent against one another, but the world will surely be watching out for one in particular..
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The Squad
Overview
When Vicente del Bosque called up his 23 chosen ones, there was little surprise, really. The team had its strong Real Madrid and Barcelona contingent – with the two clubs making up for around half of the entire squad – and upon this base were added a few Spanish stars who have shone in their respective leagues around Europe. The only noticeable miss-out is Real Madrid midfielder Xabi Alonso, who, after recently undergoing a groin surgery, is out till October. Replacing him in the 23 is Bayern Munich midfielder and recent Champions League winner, Javi Martinez.
Goalkeeper(s)
There is little to address in this part, really. Country captain Iker Casillas, after a.. err, awkward season at Real Madrid, will be first-choice for his country, at least now. The captain will look to put behind the rough season where his team were mediocre and where he himself was resigned to the bench for a large part of the season since January, watching Diego Lopez guard the goal. Thankfully, there is no Lopez in this squad and Casillas can be sure that he will lead his team out. San Iker remains one of the best goalkeepers around and has two of the safest hands in the world and in him, Spain can surely trust. The backups are of course, Liverpool‘s Pepe Reina and Barcelona’s Victor Valdes. Manchester United‘s David de Gea is unfortunately an unlucky spectator again, with del Bosque surprisingly overlooking the young Spaniard who was impressive last season.
Defence
For all the tiki-taka and attacking wonders, Spain’s defence has largely been underrated and undermined. While the world gushes about Andres Iniesta or David Villa, I believe the defence deserves as much credit, especially for their performance at Euro 2012, where the defence was not at full strength. In this squad, we have the Barcelona-Real Madrid contingent: Alba, Albiol, Arbeloa, Pique and Ramos, as well as the two EPL representatives, fullbacks Azpilicueta and Monreal. As far as the rightback slot is concerned, Azpilicueta should be the fair favourite to start, mainly because Ramos would be preferred more centrally, a position he has played for Real Madrid. Albiol might also be played there, but odds are the Chelsea rightback will get the nod. At leftback, there is tough competition between Monreal and Alba. The Barcelona defender might just have the edge here, though Monreal has been a mainstay in the Arsenal back four since he joined. As far as the centreback pairing is concerned, this should be fairly straightforward and the preferred two should be Pique and Ramos, and Albiol could be a dependable backup.
Midfield
Aha. I could finish this in a sentence and say this is arguably the best midfield in the world, but bear with me as I go a little deeper. Whenever del Bosque decides on his team, he probably looks at the word “midfield” and immediately cups his head in his hand. He probably feels like a little child who has so many wonderful toys at his disposal that he simply does not know which one to play with! However, del Bosque generally goes with the formula that has won him 3 in 3 so far. Xabi Alonso, Xavi and Busquets have been mainstays since the Spaniard took the reins, but in this case, as Xabi Alonso is out, any one of Fabregas, Cazorla and Martinez could be drafted in. These three did start together vs Haiti recently, and Martinez was the standout performer, though it was the other two who got the goals. Fabregas might just start as a False 9 again, but it will surely be interesting to see what del Bosque comes up with.
Attack
The triumvirate upfront will also yield an interesting selection by del Bosque. Out wide, the first-choice players should be Iniesta and Mata, both with great seasons with their respective clubs. Jesus Navas would be the player to pose the largest threat to these two and Pedro could be a contender too. David Silva remains an option, but his season at City was quite mediocre and it is doubtful he will command a starting place. Up front, there is a direct shootout between Fernando Torres, David Villa, Roberto Soldado and to an extent, Cesc Fabregas and Pedro Rodriguez. This all rests on del Bosque as it is dependent on whether he wants an out-and-out striker – in which case, Villa would be the favourite – or a False 9, in which case Fabregas would operate there.
This is Spain’s best XI, in my opinion:
Conclusion and prediction
All in all, it is going to be extremely interesting to see how del Bosque handles this. He has essentially stuck to more or less the same players since taking over from Aragones, but with some of those players aging and with the younger players impressing and going all guns blazing, del Bosque will have to make a decision here.
Overall, this Spanish team essentially will have to begin where it left off. The team might be tinkered with and hence, there might be some different types of talent at display in the mix, but the fluid, free-flowing football with snazzy passes and high possession will most likely persevere. A major part of this squad has been present since Euro 2008 and hence, the players know each other very well and that is essential to any national team prospering on field.
The only thing Spain might have to consider is to have a solid backup Plan B, just in case their Plan A of tiki taka-inspired football is countered to a very effective extent. They were shocked by the USA last time around and must make sure that they can make the necessary changes and change their play according to the situation. Brazil and Italy will obviously be the two main threats as far as Spain are concerned, but there is no ruling out the likes of Uruguay and Japan either. Should they meet Italy again, which is quite possible, it will be interesting to see if the Azzurri have picked up any lessons from their mauling in the Euro 2012 final. It would be quite a spectacle to witness the young Brazilian side under Scolari take on this relatively much more experienced Spanish team that just seems so dangerous.
To end off, just remember that if Spain win this, they will go to Rio in a year’s time, as the holders of all the international trophies possible for them to hold.
