2012's Best: Spain retain their international crown

Via The Telegraph

By Zach Ricchiuti

Amid a fascinating year of international soccer, the Spanish national team proved once again that they are the best in the world. Part of a short series on the best moments of 2012.

This was the year that the world didn’t end. But had the Mayans been correct, at least the international soccer community would have gone out on top.

The sport’s banner year started with Chelsea’s Champions League win, an unlikely triumph that included victories over both Barcelona and Bayern Munich. The club demonstrated perhaps the finest display of trench warfare since World War I, led by a possessed Didier Drogba, who seemingly did it all on offense and defense.

And let’s not forget about Real Madrid, which despite the controversy now swirling around Jose Mourinho (and recently stirred further by this columnist), in May ended Barcelona’s dominance over La Liga and won their 32nd league title. Madrid of 2011/12 were fantastic, a far cry from their tepid showings of late. Ronaldo shattered the club record for goals in a season with 60 fabulous strikes, and Mourinho became the first manager to win league’s in four different countries. 

Over in England, we witnessed similar dramatics. Sergio Aguero’s 94th minute score during the Premier League final brought the title back to Manchester City for the first time since 1968, and will be counted among the most explosive finishes in tourney history. It was the culmination of an entire season of possession-based football led by Aguero, David Silva and Carlos Tevez, the latter of which spent four months on an Argentine golf course before returning to drag Manchester across the finish line. 

Yet all of those memorable moments are dwarfed by the story out of economically ravaged and culturally divided Spain, whose victory at Euro 2012 established them as one of the finest sides that international soccer has ever seen. The national team’s tiki-taka style of possession soccer came under fire at times during the tournament, as they struggled to break down their opponents early on. But they stuck with their game plan, eventually dominating possession of the ball so thoroughly that they rarely played defense. Spain conceded just 16 shots on target during the whole of Euro 2012, 10 of which came from Italy during the final. By then, it didn’t much matter, as Spain cruised to a 4-0 victory. 

It was the third major championship in four years, following Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup, a testament to the team’s talent and chemistry. Head coach Vincent Del Bosque assimilated new faces quickly without disturbing the results nor the style of play, while Spain’s six-man core dictated the team’s overall attitude and approach. When stars like David Villa went down with injury, well-prepared replacements were there to step up. Never before has an international side burst with this much talent.

Even as they celebrated their Euro 2012 win and an historic consecutive championship streak, the Spanish players were focused on adding a fourth. The World Cup travels to Brazil in 2014, and Spain are likely the favorites once again. Their passes travel in every direction, but this team’s momentum is focused forward in pursuit of more titles. They are surely the toast of 2012.

Zach Ricchiuti is a contributor and resident soccer expert for Began in '96.