9 Euro To Taka

[Lucrecio Houle]

Its often said that modern football is increasingly homogeneous in a tactical sense. Yet, while it's true that the ease with which ideas can be shared has led to many teams' playing styles converging, there have been a few exceptions to the rule. In the international game, Spain had been one such case.

Following a lengthy spell in the footballing wilderness, La Roja rose to prominence in the mid-to-late 2000s, winning the Euros in 2008 and 2012, as well as the World Cup in 2010. Key to establishing this dominance was their possession-heavy style.

'Tiki-taka', as it would become known to the world - much to Pep Guardiola's chagrin - has its roots in Catalunya. You can trace it back to Johan Cruyff, but its most successful proponent was Guardiola. During the same period as Spain's incredible success, Pep's Barca were demolishing the club game, winning 14 of the 19 trophies available to them between 2008 and 2012.

And even after the silverware dried up more recently, following the retirement of their golden generation, La Roja have retained a fanatical devotion to possession-first football. That is, until very recently.

"We hope to keep this momentum going and aim for the World Cup," said the 22-year-old after scoring the opening goal in the final. "I said before the tournament that no one can match us. We are a great team."

Morata credited Iniesta and former player Bojan Krkic for persuading him to participate in the Euros. The Atltico Madrid striker has openly discussed the emotional toll of facing hateful comments on social media.

While Spain's struggles were nowhere near as long-lasting as England's drought since their 1966 World Cup victory, the team had entered a period of underachievement following their Euro 2012 triumph. Attempts to uphold the possession-based "tiki-taka" style faltered without Iniesta and company, leaving Spain to pass aimlessly in crucial matches, often exceeding 1,000 passes with few scoring opportunities.

Olmo stepped up as a starter after Pedri GonzAlez's injury and finished as joint-top scorer of the tournament with three goals. He also made a crucial defensive contribution by clearing a shot off the goal line that could have forced extra time in the final.

The round of 16 exit at the World Cup in Qatar meant the end of Luis Enrique's tenure and the promotion of Luis de la Fuente, coach of the U21s, who was given the opportunity of a lifetime. The result was an easy Euros qualification and, in the middle of it, the Nations League title last summer.

Now, in Germany, Spain will try to continue that streak of success with an interesting mix of experience, such as that of 39-year-old Jesus Navas, and youth, such as that of teenager Lamine Yamal (16).

It will not be easy, of course, to stand out in a European Championship when your name is paired with the current champions, Italy; the runners-up of the Nations League and semi-finalists in the last World Cup, Croatia; and with the continental revelation of the last two years, the booming Albania of ex-Barcelona player Sylvinho.

In this group of death, La Roja will have to be bulletproof. Any slip-up - and they are easy to make such a short tournament - can ruin all your chances. That's why that non-negotiable tiki-taka that the nation imposed as a style and that brought them so much success, has had to be updated.

There was no rival who didn't know how to counteract their game of infinite possession, so De la Fuente now intends to get the ball out to the flanks more, with more one-on-ones and more vertical play.

When Spain dominated the world of football, they did so not only because of the eye-catching play of Xavi, Andres Iniesta, David Silva, Xabi Alonso, Cesc Fabregas, David Villa and company. They did it because, in addition to the indisputable technical quality, they always had bodyguards such as Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Carlos Puyol, Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets in what the late Luis Aragones called his security corridor: a goalkeeper, centre-backs and a pivot.

Of those three positions, we could say that De la Fuente has, at the moment, the best defensive midfielder in the world: Rodri. The Manchester City player is the axis through which the team's balance passes and, incidentally, is a monumental weapon at set pieces. He does everything and does everything well. If only Pedri could get back to his best, to where he was before his multiple injuries...

Having Rodri is their greatest strength on the pitch, along with having two of the biggest talents in Europe. The wingers, as we pointed out above, are vital in generating scoring chances, and they have good ones with Lamine Yamal (Barcelona) and Nico Williams (Athletic) expected to start.

Both will play on the wing, so crosses into the box are not to be expected, but you can expect them to cut inside, to run at the opposition, to get into the box, and watch out if they have space to run because then they will be unstoppable.

One of Spain's biggest weaknesses is the goalscoring problem. It always has been. Perhaps because the country's big clubs never use a Spanish centre-forward. Of course, in their defence, it has to be said that when they have had one, the strikers have not taken advantage of the opportunity.

That is the case of the captain, Alvaro Morata. He started the season excellently but has ended up as a substitute again at Atletico Madrid, going on a terrible run that has even led him to be whistled when he has put on the national team's shirt. His understudy will be Real Madrid's Joselu, also a regular on the bench at Real Madrid.

Since the retirement of Puyol and Pique and the insistence of not counting on Ramos, the axis of the defence has been a huge problem, so much so that two French players, Aymeric Laporte and Ruben Le Normand, were naturalised to lend a hand. But it hasn't worked. Barcelona talent Pau Cubarsi is pushing hard, but giving him the responsibility at 17 years of age when he has only been in senior football for a few months is too much. That's why he has been ruled out of the Olympic Games too and why the coach has recalled Real Madrid captain Nacho.

There is also Vivian, the protege of a De la Fuente, who looks a lot, perhaps too much, at his club performances, because the level that the Athletic player played at when he made his debut, and in the friendly against the weak Andorra, was something to shudder at.

The 4-3-3 continues to be the formation most used by the Spanish coach. Of course, it has its nuances - because of the versatility of the central midfielders, it can easily be transformed into a 4-2-3-1.

What is certain is that Unai Simon will continue to be the keeper. He is the one who offers the most security, more than David Raya and Alex Remiro, and the one with the most international experience.

At the back, after the injuries to Alejandro Balde and Jose Gaya, Alejandro Grimaldo's season at Bayer Leverkusen should make him unassailable at left-back. On the right, Dani Carvajal is the first choice, ahead of Jesus Navas. The doubts, due to the aforementioned weaknesses, appear in the centre-back position, with the possibility of Nacho coming in for one of the French players.

In midfield, only Mikel Merino could take Fabian's starting place. And if Pedri does not start, other different but equally compatible options could be Alex Baena or debutant Fermin Lopez. Dani Olmo or Mikel Oyarzabal could also be moved back, although that would only be in case of extreme offensive need.

Up front, Olmo and Oyarzabal could also act as false 9s if Morata does not perform. Ferran Torres, who has always shown a good relationship with the goal, could be a good alternative for any of the three theoretically first-choice strikers.

Spain continue their tradition of not having a big star who can dazzle on his own. It has, for example, no Kylian Mbappe to depend on. The good thing about that is that the strength is in the group, in that if one drops out, the one who replaces him maintains the same level. And in a tournament like this, when the legs at the end of the season are already very heavy, having a deep squad can be, as the rounds progress, a differentiating factor.

It is always difficult to predict what will happen, especially when you are in the group of death. Three teams can go through to the second round, but it's hard to be one of the best third-placed teams when there's so much quality.

In any case, with Italy showing no signs of being at their best and Croatia still depending a lot on what veteran Luka Modric is able to generate from his magician's hat, Spain may have a good chance to make a splash and qualify as winners. Let's not forget Albania, who could give any of the three favourites a scare.

Le capitaine de la Rpublique tchque Tomas Rosicky a compar le style de jeu de l'Espagne, le fameux "tika-taka", avec celui de la Croatie, qu'il juge "plus rapide", jeudi lors de la confrence de presse d'avant match, Saint-Etienne.

Auteur d'une saison quasi blanche Arsenal, o il a t longtemps sur le flanc cause des blessures, le meneur de jeu (35 ans) a assur qu'il se sentait "bien" malgr le manque de rythme. "Je suis en forme pour jouer, je peux vous montrer (vendredi) que je peux encore jouer au football", a-t-il prvenu.

R: "Les deux quipes ont de grandes qualits mais le style est diffrent. L'Espagne pratique le +tiki-taka+ (rptition de passes courtes, ndlr). La Croatie, c'est un +tiki taka+ plus rapide, ils ne font pas autant de passes que les Espagnols. Ils sont trs forts en attaque. Mais chaque quipe a ses faiblesses, nous de les utiliser."

R: "Je ne sais pas ce que je peux dire. Bien sr, je sais que je suis important pour l'quipe et l'entraneur. Je sais que je porte une responsabilit sur le terrain chaque fois donc cela sera le cas (vendredi) aussi. (Avec Ivan Rakitic, Modric) est la grande force de l'quipe croate. L'un est au Real Madrid, l'autre est Barcelone... Le but (de Modric contre la Turquie) est difficile marquer, cela arrive une fois tous les 100 ans. Il est difficile de dfendre contre ce genre de joueur."

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