The SFG team continues its post-mortem of Euro 2012 with a look at Group C, perhaps an understated group pre-tournament, which eventually involved the two finalists.
Spain
The Good
Spain are champions of Europe once again. By winning Euro 2012, they became the first European side to win three major international championships in a row and will now surely go down as one of the all-time great international sides. Their performance in the final against Italy was the best performance by any team in the whole tournament. They were much more energetic than in previous matches, playing at a tempo that the Italians couldn’t deal with. It was a performance that will be remembered years from now and will likely be the defining result of this Golden Era of Spanish football.
One major positive was the emergence of Jordi Alba on the international stage. Spain, due to their personnel and tactics, naturally lack width in their side so Alba’s role in the side was a huge factor in their success as he was able to stretch their play out wide and provide another attacking outlet. It was only fitting that he picked up a goal (and a superb one at that) in the final. Other standout players included Andres Iniesta, whose dazzling dribbles and uncanny ability to find space was brilliant throughout the tournament.
