It Reigns in Spain

How do you say ‘Golden Generation’ in Spanish?

If ever a team deserves that cliched label, one cannot ignore Spain’s current crop. At the risk of throwing numbers around too liberally, since a 2-0 loss to Sweden in Stockholm in October 2006, they have notched up 16 wins and 2 draws in 18 competitive starts. During that run, they have notched up 39 goals and conceded 6. In 2008 alone, they have won 13 out of all 14 matches played, including friendlies against opposition such as France, Italy and Denmark.

Along the way, they also handled the small matter of winning their first major title in 44 years after winning the European Championships in Vienna.

The wealth of talent throughout their ranks is nothing short of Brazilian. Cesc Fabregas would sail into the first-eleven of any international side—Brazil and Argentina included—but he is forced to understudy Xavi and Iniesta in the national set-up. The strength of their collective performances for both club and country are consistently exceptional, such is the understanding they have forged. If they possessed any more chemistry they would explode.

In the final third of the pitch, the Spanish Armada boast of more options than the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Vicente Del Bosque must feel like a child with too many PlayStation games to choose from when he selects his squad, but any manager in the world must feel slightly overwhelmed when he sees Silva, Carzola, Riera, Capel, Joaquin, Navas, De la Red and Krkic and realizes he must omit half of them. David Villa and Fernando Torres would induce certain Sheiks into mortgaging their oil wells had they any shot of procuring their services.

Perhaps the true beauty of this Spanish side is that there are no stars. Stop sniggering: There are eleven world-class footballers on the pitch. But when everyone is a star, no one is a star. This is unique. France was inspired by Zidane, Brazil counted on Ronaldo’s goals. Although the Italian Class of ’06 somewhat exemplified this, they were still reliant on Cannavaro’s superb defensive marshaling. An optimum equity exists in the current Spanish side. No player dominates the team, no individual is larger than life. The team as a result is durable and balanced. Balance breeds consistency. Consistency breeds success.

That Spain are so wonderfully synchronized is significant. There is ambiguity with regard to nationality in Spain as there exists a rich variety of ethnic groups fiercely loyal to their heritage. Indeed, the current Zapatero government promotes the concept of Spain as a ‘Nation of Nations’. What partisan loyalty players might have to either their ancestry or indeed their clubs (Real Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, all disparate autonomous communities) however, completely evaporate when they don the Red, Blue and Gold. Spain have eleven supremely talented players fighting for one cause and Capello is undoubtedly trying to instill a similar team ethos into England.

If anything, Spain are enjoying a golden sporting age. Rafa Nadal, Fernando Alonso, Sergio Garcia and Pau Gasol are young, Spanish and already internationally renowned. Surely there must be a Spanish adaptation of ‘Let The Good Times Roll’?

Borat, Capello and Wembley

England welcome mighty Kazakhstan to Wembley on Saturday. Apparently the only Englishman fired up for the showdown is Sacha Baron Cohen, who must see this as the perfect marketing opportunity to release Borat: The Sequel. Capello, on the other hand, will be hoping his charges avoid becoming the unwitting stars in what could turn out to be a completely different comedy.

In some respects, this match takes on an importance comparable to Zagreb, although for different reasons. With the 3-0 victory over Russia a possible exception, England have yet to register a convincing performance at Wembley. Capello believes the vociferous home support occasionally has a counter-productive effect on the players, particularly if they fail to score the early goal against supposedly inferior opposition. The argument is plausible, but the atmosphere in the stadium, even when England are displaying the worst elements of their game, is only one of pent-up frustration rather than nasty rancour. Compared to numerous stadia in South America, the most treacherous depths of hostility Wembley surely does not represent.

Furthermore, it is difficult to accept that the players are unaccustomed to playing under the most stressful of conditions. 7 of the 11 players in the probable starting line-up have played in a Champions League final. They are stalwarts for their clubs which are currently at the forefront of European football. The coach and his players must replicate the assurance displayed in Zagreb, heckling home support or not.

There is an interesting article by former England winger Chris Waddle in the Mail Online. He opines that Walcott will not be nearly as effective against the Kazakhs as he was in Croatia. Walcott, argues, possesses incredible pace but not much else.

 ”He’s very quick and beats players with his pace rather than tricks and cleverness. His ideal ball is not the one to his feet so he can take players on…But now for a note of caution. Although his acceleration is an obvious gift, maybe it’s covering cracks in his game which he will need to fix in time.”

Walcott thrives on space behind the full backs, against opponents playing a relatively high line. Unless Borat is appointed Head Coach before Saturday, the Kazakhs will fortify their goal, giving England about as much space behind their defence as have refugees on a boat. Walcott is not the most incisive passer of the ball, neither does England possess a distributor with the calibre of Fabregas at Arsenal.

Waddle feels Wright-Phillips, rejunvenated since his transfer from Chelsea, should supplant the Arsenal man against Kazakhstan and Belarus. While his contention is valid, it is unlikely that Capello will omit Walcott from the starting line-up come Saturday. Walcott is emblematic of Capello’s new England. Moreover the teenager did the Italian a great favour in Croatia. As a result of that perfomance, Capello has more time and greater leeway to implement his methods and ideas. He is probably inclined to return Walcott the favour by showing loyalty to him, at least for the immediate future.

This is still an experimental phase for Capello. Kazakhstan is a different animal from Billic’s Croatia and Capello has yet to prove that he has mastered a game plan when his team are the outright favourites. Comfortable three-nils over Kazakhstan and Belarus will not warm the heart of any English supporter, but will probably represent a safe bet that Capello is taking England in a positive direction.