A Beau Article..

Any long time Spanish fan would apperciate this article..

[ Btw.. ive been missing for sometime.. just subtly enjoying my holidays which are soon getting over, sis is visiting btw.. which is why i dont have a lot of time with my thoughts and more to post them up.. not that im blaming her.. im just too lazy to squeeze everything into such short days! =p.. God bless.. ]

Enjoi the final every1!!

I aint a football pundit or anythin but..
Prediction
Spain 2 or 3 - Germany 1 ..with the German's scoring an early or a late goal!

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TIME FOR MARRIAGE (29th of June)
I am writing this preview during my brief stopover in London, already on my way to Vienna. Before I started thinking of how to approach this match, the first final we will play in 24 years, I took a look at my past articles during the course of this Euro 2008. Despite being full of expectations, I always compared supporting Spain to dating a girl when you are quite positive it will not work. You talk yourself into her, give her another chance, but deep inside you know that at some point something terrible will happen and you'll feel disappointed and frustrated. And yet again, you end up giving her another go. .

Along the same lines, and after feeling disappointed and frustrated by our national team in seven consecutive World Cups and five Euros, at the beginning of this tournament I talked myself into Spain. I knew the base of players was pretty similar to that of WC06, I knew the gaffer was the same grumpy old man, and I also knew our group was not very tough, but not very easy either. But I felt this time could be different (like every other time you go back with that girlfriend you should not ever date): the team had no internal issues, our midfield looked more structured and indeed world class, and the whole group was exactly what the coach wanted, which had not been the case in two years ago in Germany.

And for once, just for this once, getting back with that old girlfriend has payed off. Sunday night's result does not really matter to me anymore. This journey has given me enough moments to remember so that I think the gamble was worth the risk. In this process we have beaten Italy in a penalty shootout, we have passed the quarterfinals round, and more importantly, we have looked like a team that deserves to be considered as a candidate for title contention, and not a new and improved version of the perennial underachievers.

But that does not mean that I am happy with the second place. That would mean to go back to our usual victimism, that Spanish characteristic that has defined our approach to life and football for a long, excessive time. Following the path of so many Spanish sports and management icons during the last few years, this team has done a sizeable amount of work to erase that national trauma. Now it has to get to the end of it.

And we play Germany, the best representation of the will to win football has even seen. After overcoming our Italian obsession, after demolishing Russia, this is the ultimate test. If we beat the Germans, if we show that we want this win more than they do, we will have finished off that ghost once and for all.

The aim is clear and seems achievable. Germany has looked positively weak at the back and unstable in midfield. They got to the final stage after beating Portugal first, in a match in which the referee's decision influenced clearly on the final result: Ronaldo was intimidated early by some violent fouls and even being stepped on by a German defender, with no punishment from the referee, and their third goal was blatantly illegal after Ballack's foul. This goal, completely against the flow of play, all but ended Portugal's hopes of getting back into the match. Then they had a terrible match against a depleted Turkish squad, but in both encounters they showed a fantastic determination and desire to win. They will need to show that again in Vienna.

Our team can get this job done. I am going to skip the usual pre-match analysis. After experiencing a noticeable evolution during the tournament, our team looks as good as ever. Our defence is confident and reliable, our midfield is the envy of every other European country and even without Villa, Torres and Guiza have proved dangerous in each match. Aragones seems relieved of past issues and has total control of the team, having mastered the substitutions and the tactical changes in every match. And if that was not enough, most neutrals will support us.

Similarly to the Italy match, this will not be a test of our capability of playing football better than the Germans. We know we are a better football team. Rather, this match will actually represent the ultimate challenge of our desire to win the whole thing, overcoming our classic football trauma and becoming a top tier nation from now on.

This is the final proof that this girl deserves my love. It looks like it's time to settle down and marry her. I just need to meet the mother-in-law, and if she does not spit on me, it will be a done deal. Let's get this done. It is about time.

FINAL VERDICT: SPAIN 3 (Torres 2, Fabregas) - Germany 1 (Klose)

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This was written by Eduardo Alvarez from Spain..

Peace
RR