Viva Espana

They weren’t the prettiest team at the World Cup, or the best, but they ended up as the champions. Spain has shed their label as underachievers on the world stage by conquering the Netherlands in extra time on Sunday to win the 2010 World Cup.

For a team with so much talent, they weren’t very convincing in any of their wins and really played a plodding and methodical style of play that seemed very un-Spanish. This was a team that supposed to excite with their amazing skill, but for all of their passes and possession, they didn’t create a ton of legitimate chances. In fact, the best chances were had by the Dutch.

Twice Arjen Robben was put in on goal but couldn’t convert. The second time, he was clearly impeded by Carles Puyol, who should have received a second yellow card, or even a straight red for clumsily trying to take down Robben on his break.

The referee’s decisions and the amount of times he pulled cards from his pocket will surely be a topic of type for a time to come. Sure, the Dutch played a very physical game, but 14 yellows and a red in the World Cup final is not something that should happen. Harold Webb may be a world-class official, but he was off his rocker on Sunday. He made himself the spectacle of a game and that should never be the case with an official; let the players play.

So, with month-long tournament coming to a close, we’ll now have to wait two more years until the next big soccer tournament to grace our presences: Euro 2012. It looks like we’ll have to get by on healthy doses of club football until then.