Word: spain
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...other hand, the prospect of facing Spain in a final isn't something that most teams have to think about, given Spain's tendency to fold like a bad poker hand in the quarters of major tournaments. But Spain looked devastating in trashing Russia 4-1 in its opener; less so against Sweden in winning the second game. Its second squad squashed a disinterested Greece in the third game of the first round. Then, in a monumentally awful game with Italy, Spain unloaded 80 years of futility against the Italians by outlasting them on penalties. The flowing attacks of David...
...hope for the semi on Thursday was that Spain and Russia would stage a drag race up and down the pitch in Vienna. Russia had run roughshod over Holland - the odds-on favorite and tournament glamour boys - in the quarters, pouring into the Dutch end like the relentless rains that seemed to show up at every kickoff of Euro 2008. We learned to pronounce the names of strikers Roman Pavlyuchenko and Andre Arshavin (I'm still working on Diniyar Bilyaletdinov). The Russians had gotten progressively better, and their swarming attacks, their pure athleticism, were too much for Sweden and Greece...
...What happened to that Russian team? Instead, the semifinal was a cat and mouse game, at least for the first half, with neither team holding much of an advantage or showing much initiative in going forward. Then, five minutes into the second half, Xavi speared a goal for Spain, redirecting Iniesta's cross/shot past Igor Akinfeev. You could sense the panic on the Russian side. The roles were now very clear: Russia was the mouse and Spain was toying with it. Russian coach Guus Hiddink knew that his team's lack of depth and a big-game resume...
...They sure are. But with a wistful sense of what might have been now that the focus has shifted to Germany and Spain...
...Certainly, Turkey gave Germany a lot to think about going into Sunday's match. The Turks launched themselves against Germany from the opening whistle - take note, Spain - and Kazim Kazim's smash off the crossbar in the 7th minute served notice that even this makeshift team was going to be a handful. The Turks abused the German outside backs all night, often getting into deep positions behind them. Lahm got taken to the cleaners on Turkey's first goal, when Sabri Sarioglu went around him in a drive that ended with a rebound shot from Ugur Boral. His awkward, sweeping...