A Sword Behind Every Pass: Spain's Plan To Stifle Messi Came Down To Precision
NEW YORK NEW JERSEY STADIUM In Sun Tzus The Art of War, one of the biggest takeaways is how success needs to be determined even before you enter battle. In war, the key assets of preparation will always outdo any reactionary tactics, because knowing the entire blueprint doesnt just make you better prepared, it makes you omnipotent. To win is to also know about timing. To be perfectly engaged in knowing when and how to engage so when the actual battle comes, you have already designed your own outcome. Victory, therefore, is not about perfection, but perfect planning. And this is how I see Luis de La Fuentes Spain side, a team so perfect in its planning that to defeat it even with the greatest player on your side is almost an impossible task. In essence, Spain already knows what you want to do before you even do it. And thats what Sundays World Cup final and this entire tournament showed us with this magnificent team. A Spanish side that knows you better than you know yourself. It's why La Roja came out victorious with a 1-0 result against Lionel Messis Argentina thanks to a 106th-minute winner from Barcelonas Ferran Torres. Spain stifled any hopes for Argentina and its chances of a title defense and claiming its second World Cup trophy since 2010. Spain also broke a record for 38 matches without losing a game, surpassing Italy. It was also Spain's seventh clean sheet of this World Cup, becoming the first mens team in World Cup history to win while only conceding one goal. Sun Tzu also tells us about winning without the need for conflict. In Spains case, this is done by possession and recovery of. The victors had nearly 70% possession and 762 passes. Argentina didnt break 400. It also failed to register a single shot on target. But the most impressive part of Spains game plan is that it suffocates you. It is the Darth Vader of football where you, the opponent, float in the air, lost and devoid of oxygen. Spain loses the ball and, like a piranha addicted to the scent of blood, rapidly swims to get it. It happened throughout the afternoon against Argentina. Lionel Scaloni didnt have a solution and neither did his players as they continued to become more frustrated, hence Enzo Fernndezs red card and Leandro Paredess antics. And Messi? He was a mortal today. He barely mattered. And I want you to know this is a difficult thing for me to say because I admire the man more than youll ever know. And to watch him weep at the end of the game, knowing this is his curtain call at the World Cup, pains me to my very core. But he had no chance today. Nobody on Argentina did. Spain is a monster. No, actually. I take it back. It is an android army, hidden inside a Picasso painting. Its spine is a wonderful dichotomy of youth and experience. From the magnificent Pau Cubars who, just like Lamine Yamal, is 19 years old, to the Golden Ball winner Rodri who simply rolled back the years in the tournament. The Manchester City midfielder, who won the Ballon dOr in 2024, needed time to find his way after his ACL injury. And my goodness did he. Rodri didnt score a goal at the World Cup, but thats not what his game is about. He is the general who commands the midfield with grace, control and tenacity. He became the 11th man to win the World Cup, the Champions League and the aforementioned Ballon d'Or. I was at the final at New York New Jersey Stadium. I saw a very energetic Argentinian fanbase looking to do everything in its power to encourage its team to victory. But minute by minute, they realized what we were all seeing, which was a Spanish side which was breaking away their spirit. And what about de la Fuente? A man who loves quotes and historical references just as much as me. Let me tell you about him. This is a man who comes from Spain's proud Basque Country, who fully believes in grassroots football and needs his teams to represent the people, the community, the culture of the nation. He won the U-19 and U-20 Euros before taking over the senior side and once he took the helm, he brought this philosophy with him. It is a full belief in youth culture too, as most of these players who have just won the World Cup have been with him from the very beginning. "I come from a grassroots background," he once said before winning the Euros in 2024. "Our commitment, to the people we trust in the youth system, is not a pose, it is a conviction." And you see it in this team, which is just a representation of Spanish football. Again, watching them play live is a joy to behold. It passes the ball with ultimate accuracy, but what makes it different from any other side and I would say Pep Guardiolas Barcelona or Vicente Del Bosques 2010 World Cup winning team is that this side does it with that word again: conviction. There is a sword behind every pass. A will and an intent. Argentina, frustrated, angry and lost without an idea, could not handle it. Marc Cucurella, for example, was outstanding in this tournament, including Sunday. So was Pedro Porro. Yamal, who wasnt even that strong today when comparing it to his own standards, was excellent off the ball. And this is Spain an army of one who makes you look very weak and fully represents my final quote from Sun Tzu: "Opportunities multiply as they are seized." Thats Espaa. A team who loses an option and immediately creates another. And with a thousand cuts, it turns you into confetti, including the one and only Lionel Messi. There was never a better team than Spain at this World Cup. It wasnt even close. But just like Picassos Guernica it requires a closer, deeper sense of understanding to fully appreciate its complete grandeur.
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