The news was the inclusion from the start of Victor Valdes as goalkeeper & the debut of Swansea forward Michu. Both played in line with the match, Valdes had relatively little work to do - expect at the end - & Michu could not shine "trapped" in the defensive Belarus wall.
Most teams have basically figured out a way to play against Spain, that is put 10 men in defence & wait for a Spanish mistake to counter-attack. This gives the ball on a platter to Spain which dominates with possession but they bounce off the rival wall. The Spanish frustration was such that Spanish Coach Del Bosque resorted after half time to just 3 defenders pushing an extra man up front ( took off defender Monreal for Iniesta ) in the style of FC Barcelona ex-Coach Guardiola.
It took 60 mins to open up the Belarus can & that came after a ball fumbled in the goal square to have Xavi Hernandez smash it into the net. This calmed the nerves of the Spanish Team & the second came in the 77th min when Alvaro Negredo ( on for Michu ) headed a Sergio Ramos pass.
Spanish Coach Del Bosque them changed the midfield to give Koke a run & in the "settling period" Belarus took advantage of a field mistake to score their only goal from Kornilenko in the 88th min. A last minute game "scare" for Spain.
Important win for Spain that gives them half a ticket for Brazil that can be totally secured as mathematical Top of the Group team by beating Georgia next Tuesday.
Tweet
No comments:
Post a Comment