Euro 2012 Quarterfinal Preview: Spain vs France

The moment every football aficionado was waiting for has finally arrived. The quintessential European blockbuster is set to take centre-stage in Ukraine when world conquerors Spain take on France in the third quarterfinal fixture of Euro 2012. The Spanish armada is looking to take home their third major international crown in a row and standing between them and the unprecedented achievement are eleven French artisans, who themselves will be hoping to cause the tournament’s biggest upset and take another step towards regaining lost glory.

Spain

The Spanish armada hasn’t had everything its way in Poland-Ukraine. After a desperate start against Italy, where they were a pale shadow of the team that conquered the world two years back, Spain did somewhat return to the good old days against Ireland. But let’s be honest, Ireland weren’t the most difficult of opponents. If that was a sign of things to come, the fans were left disappointed after their 1-0 win over Croatia. They did manage to grab all three points but the unconvincing manner of victory left much to be desired.

The tactics and team selection aren’t clear yet. Xavi, though he has smashed passing records, hasn’t really looked Barcelona-sharp and deadly. Pique still looks shaky and reports of clashes with Ramos haven’t done him any good.

But, again, they are the reigning World and European champions. On their day, they can annihilate and humiliate any bunch of eleven players on the pitch. The members of the French squad are still very much mortals. For Spain, just bringing out their exhaustive tiki-taka in Donetsk will not suffice. Possession doesn’t get you goals (Iniesta, Pique, Xavi & Fabregas would know best). Plus, France have been equally threatening in attack with Ribery, Nasri and Benzema working in tandem and to great effect.

France

Blanc was forced to confirm reports of verbal clashes and confrontations in the dressing room after the boys tasted defeat after such a long time. That wasn’t the ideal match preparation ahead of the most-awaited quarterfinal. Infighting shows lack of confidence in each other and results in blame-games. The French camp, noted for its squad unison, togetherness and respect for each other under Blanc, suddenly seems to be back in its Raymond Domenech days. But the defeat would have taught them a lesson or two.

A fast-paced attacking philosophy with intricate exchange of short passes and inter-play has been the backbone of France ever since Blanc took over the reins. It’s not too different from Spain’s approach but requires far less passing in the build-up to an attacking move. Their football can be breathtaking and comes in waves, sometimes leaving the opponents gasping for air. But the question arises – Will they see enough of the ball to actually unravel their own brand of football? Because one thing is absolutely sure – Spain simply love to keep the possession. But France haven’t lost to them in a competitive game ever. Yes, never.

Recent form

Spain

Consistent. They are yet to lose in their last five games, including their unbeaten run in the group stages. But they haven’t quite reached the standards one expects from them. The absence of David Villa has been detrimental but their squad depth and quality should have taken care of it. Instead, Del Bosque has been forced to send out a six-man midfield with Fabregas occupying the most advanced position. Torres showed signs of returning to his best against Ireland only to be doused again by Croatia. It’s been a case of just doing enough rather than the perfect performance that became synonymous with Spain over the last few years.

Jun 18 Croatia 0 – 1 Spain ECJun 14 Spain 4 – 0 Ireland ECJun 10 Spain 1 – 1 Italy ECJun 3 Spain 1 – 0 China FRMay 30 Spain 4 – 1 South Korea FR

France

Excellent. France were on a merry run until they ran into Sweden in their final group game. Their 23-match unbeaten streak was dealt a defining blow when the Scandinavians upstaged them with sheer class. France no longer hold the tag of ‘Invincibles’ and the prospect of nullifying Spain’s beautiful passing game will be already giving them headaches. If Les Bleus can wipe out their Swedish memories and extract confidence from their 22-month long streak, they’ll be in with a chance.

Jun 19 Sweden 2 – 0 France ECJun 15 Ukraine 0 – 2 France ECJun 11 France 1 – 1 England ECJun 5 France 4 – 0 Estonia FRMay 31 France 2 – 0 Serbia FR

Line-ups and formations

SPAIN (4-2-3-1)CasillasArbeloa, Ramos, Pique, Alba Busquets, AlonsoSilva, Xavi, Iniesta,Torres

FRANCE (4-2-3-1) LlorisDebuchy, Koscielny, Rami, ClichyCabaye/Diarra, M’VilaMenez, Nasri, RiberyBenzema

Spain should start with the same team as their last two matches. But Del Bosque will have to make two important calls. Firstly, whether to go with the six-man midfield that lacked penetration against Italy or play a natural striker in Fernando Torres. Torres scored twice against a lackluster Irish defense but failed to get going against a much more formidable Croatian side. Fabregas was called upon to break the deadlock and the Barcelona playmaker did exactly that with a delicious chip that let Iniesta and Navas in.

FABREGAS or TORRES? The million-dollar question

Secondly, the Spanish think-tank will have to choose the right man for the right flank. David Silva and Jesus Navas are the two likely contenders. While Navas is a natural right-footed winger and possesses raw pace and silky dribbling skills, Silva is a more modern left-footed midfielder who likes to cut inside from the opposite flank. Silva’s inclusion will cut out those deadly crosses from the right flank as the Manchester City player is not too fond of using his weaker foot.

France, on the other hand, have a lot on their plate. Laurent Blanc has had sufficient time to rethink his strategy following his team’s defeat at the hands of Sweden. They’ll miss the experience of Mexes in the center of defense and Laurent Koscielny will be have to be on the top of his game in his first start of Euro 2012. Clichy is expected to keep his place ahead of Patrice Evra.

Another interesting development will be the selection of the second defensive midfielder alongside Yann M’Vila. The Rennes midfielder is certain to start but his partner is still a cause for speculation at this moment. Blanc will weigh his two options – Alou Diarra and Yohan Cabaye. The former is an anchor man while the latter is more attack-minded. The selection should ultimately come down to France’s starting strategy.

Prediction

It’s difficult to see past Spain for this one. Infighting in the French squad after last week’s loss brought back memories of South Africa and that coupled with dented confidence and fear of being run over by Spain should prove too much to handle for France. There are no two ways about the quality of the French attacking force but merely running around and chasing Spain’s possession football will not get them anything out of the game.

A 1-0 win for Spain with Iniesta or Torres on the scorecard.