Group D: Spain v Russia
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Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
Spain also started euro 2004 with a win over Russia, and then didnt even manage to get past the group stage.
Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
Spain were a little shaky in defence, so still too early to see how good they are this time round.
Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
After 1st round, i'll said netherlands, spain and germany looks like the best team at this tournament so far !!
and how the fk can england lost to Russia when Spain can destroy them easily .. thx u mc
and how the fk can england lost to Russia when Spain can destroy them easily .. thx u mc
Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
tobes wrote:i'm 3/4's spanish, so very happy we got off to a great start against one of the dark horses!
LOL !!
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totsreds08
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Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
just watching the highlights. torres and villa absolutely dominate up front. if rafa has 2 bring anybody else in this summer, please let it be him. they would kill any defence. spain played brilliant
Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
totsreds08 wrote:just watching the highlights. torres and villa absolutely dominate up front. if rafa has 2 bring anybody else in this summer, please let it be him. they would kill any defence. spain played brilliant
To be honest, Of rafa want to get Villa, I believe Liverpool will get him easily ..
David Villa and Torres looks like a good mate ..
when he scored his third goal, he ran to the bench and hug torres ..
or are they g@y !!
Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
A Spanish Armada has sunk Hiddink’s men with David Villa bagging a hat-trick as the Russians were spent packing in a 4-1 demolition. Despite the emphatic score line, the game itself presented Aragones with some dilemmas to consider. Does he break with tradition to suit his prolific striking duo of Villa and Torres? The Spanish style of football is to build slowly from the back and through the midfield. This style can be frustratingly slow at times. It is instructive that two of the goals against Russia were scored because the ball was played quickly to the strikers before the defence had a chance to settle while the other two resulted from Russia turning over the ball in midfield.
In any case, Spain looked very dangerous when the ball was played quickly to Torres or Villa, giving them a chance to isolate and beat their man. The consistency and ease with which Torres was able to beat his direct opponent was reminiscent of how he turned Senderos inside-out and how his footwork resulted in the send-off of Materazzi against Inter. Several times in the game against Russia, he turned the Russian defenders to stone or left them on their backside. After his 33 goal haul for Liverpool, he could be in unplayable form.
Frighteningly, he didn’t even get on the scoresheet although he did setup the games opener after unselfishly laying the ball off for Villa when he had every right to shoot after beating his man. So will Aragones be willing to break with tradition? After all, their traditional slow style of play didn’t look nearly as dangerous as when they played to the strengths of their deadly duo. If there is a change in tactics, surely Aragones will bring Fábregas into the starting line-up as the Arsenal man has made a habit of finding Adebayor with perfectly weighted balls straight down the centre of the park. This is exactly the kind of service that Torres lived off during his sensational season for Liverpool.
Another concern would be the soundness of the defence. The Russians managed to hit the post twice (although once after a soft free-kick had already been given) and a more clinical would have bagged a few goals against the leaky Spanish back-line.
As for Hiddink, he can take comfort in the fact that he will probably not have to face another striker force as potent as Villa and Torres. Russia’s problems are very much at the back as they actually looked very good going forward and the first goal arguable came against the run of play. Several times, their passing game created good chances in the opposition box. However, Hiddink will need to work some of that old magic and fix up Russia’s rather static defence. The one-on-one defending was shocking and was the cause of most of Russia’s problems. Still, he is considered a super-coach and this tournament will provide another chance for him to show the world why (his team has always managed to progress beyond the group stage of major tournaments).
In any case, Spain looked very dangerous when the ball was played quickly to Torres or Villa, giving them a chance to isolate and beat their man. The consistency and ease with which Torres was able to beat his direct opponent was reminiscent of how he turned Senderos inside-out and how his footwork resulted in the send-off of Materazzi against Inter. Several times in the game against Russia, he turned the Russian defenders to stone or left them on their backside. After his 33 goal haul for Liverpool, he could be in unplayable form.
Frighteningly, he didn’t even get on the scoresheet although he did setup the games opener after unselfishly laying the ball off for Villa when he had every right to shoot after beating his man. So will Aragones be willing to break with tradition? After all, their traditional slow style of play didn’t look nearly as dangerous as when they played to the strengths of their deadly duo. If there is a change in tactics, surely Aragones will bring Fábregas into the starting line-up as the Arsenal man has made a habit of finding Adebayor with perfectly weighted balls straight down the centre of the park. This is exactly the kind of service that Torres lived off during his sensational season for Liverpool.
Another concern would be the soundness of the defence. The Russians managed to hit the post twice (although once after a soft free-kick had already been given) and a more clinical would have bagged a few goals against the leaky Spanish back-line.
As for Hiddink, he can take comfort in the fact that he will probably not have to face another striker force as potent as Villa and Torres. Russia’s problems are very much at the back as they actually looked very good going forward and the first goal arguable came against the run of play. Several times, their passing game created good chances in the opposition box. However, Hiddink will need to work some of that old magic and fix up Russia’s rather static defence. The one-on-one defending was shocking and was the cause of most of Russia’s problems. Still, he is considered a super-coach and this tournament will provide another chance for him to show the world why (his team has always managed to progress beyond the group stage of major tournaments).
Re: Group D: Spain v Russia
spain were fluent going forward, always looked like they could score,,, but still prone to lapses at the back.
on another day........who knows.
on another day........who knows.