How to beat Spain at the World Cup

Posted by Trevor Cassidy in Featured Articles, Teams, World Cup on June 4th, 2010 | no responses

No team is unbeatable, especially if the match goes to penalties. So before FIFA engraves Spain’s name on the World Cup trophy, the other teams in South Africa might want to consider these three tactics in knocking off the tournament’s top side.

Get Dirty - Spain may be spectacularly talented, but they are not the toughest kids on the block. They fall down. They get hurt. They do their fair share of whining. And then all those fancy moves and tricky passes begin to go wanting. In fact, one of the keys to the USA’s shock victory over Spain during last summer’s Confederations Cup was their constant harrying of La Roja. So if it means opposing teams must play a little dirty to break up the play and gain the advantage, so be it.

Give Ramos Room to Roam – Sergio Ramos, he of the chiseled chest and the long flowing hair, has one slight flaw in his game. Just like Brazil’s Dani Alves, Ramos has a penchant for going on a walkabout. He likes to get forward. He likes to roam the wings. Sometimes that means he gets caught upfield, which puts extra pressure on the central defensive pairing of Pique and Puyol, who have been known to be vulnerable at the back. So give Sergio the room to roam. Entice him up field, then spring on the counterattack.

Talk up Spain’s Chances - The Spanish hate this. After decades of underperforming at major tournaments… after decades of bottling the big games that everyone expected them to win… the Spanish seem to have learned their lesson. One of the reasons they emerged victorious at Euro 2008 is because they managed to temper expectations that they’d do well in that tournament. Has the psychological hex been broken? Who knows? But they now bristle anytime anyone suggests they are the favorites to win the World Cup. So keep repeating it. “Spain are the favourites.” “Spain are the favourites.” “Spain are the favourites.”