I have a confession to make. As I sat and watched the World Cup semi-final between Spain and France, I was afraid of what would happen..
Blues looked unstoppable while Red won, but rarely made an impression. Kylian Mbappe led the Golden Boot race with eight goals, while our superstar Lamin Yamal looked up and down and never produced a truly decisive performance throughout the tournament.
I accepted a valiant, face-saving defeat until the match started 2-0. Red.
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For a Spain fan, everything looked familiar: dominant possession, strong defense and little to worry about. This was a cause for concern in the first few matches of the World Cup – especially the opening match against Cape Verde – but the team then moved forward confidently, either openly or deceptively dominating their opponents – at times with a little luck on their side – en route to the semi-finals.
The storyline sounded oddly familiar, almost like a copy of something I’d heard before, but then it hit me: this was Spain at the 2010 World Cup.
Let me bring you up to speed. Red entered the 2010 World Cup as favorites, winning the 2008 European Championship and wowing the world with his style of play, especially his ethereal midfield – much like Spain in 2026.
The Iberians lost badly in their first match of the tournament, shocked by Switzerland’s 1-0 scoreline, bringing back the ghosts of past tournament failures for Spanish fans. The manager came out and tried to calm everyone down by saying: “It wasn’t our day… the World Cup isn’t over yet” – very similar to Spain in 2026.
Cool heads prevailed and the team went on a winning streak, mostly by one goal, en route to the semi-finals against the European giants – just like Spain in 2026.
In the semi-finals against the traditional boogeyman, who Red recently turned the tables, in this case Germany, Spain won most of the possession and controlled the match for the most part, but the Germans had chances that threatened Spain’s goal but ultimately failed to break through. I don’t need to repeat what happened at the end.
The parallels between this team’s performances and those of the national heroes of 2010 are striking, except that there is something more to them.
This team evolved from that pick up a powerhouse that dominated the sport from 2008 to 2012, and you only need to look at Euro 2024 to see how.
Gone is the repetitive, exhausting, possession-based game that many countries and club teams have figured out how to stop. It was replaced by fast-paced, exciting striker-led football that thrilled the world.
The constant in Spain’s DNA has always been a strong midfield and an underrated defense that have allowed teams to win in their own unique ways, but behind the Euro 2024 victory were two stellar names: Lamin Yamal and Nico Williams.
Unfortunately, before the World Cup this year, both of our stars on the wings were injured. Luis de la Fuente brought them both to North America and fortunately was patient in bringing them back.
Unfortunately, in the first match against Cape Verde, the Spain coach tried to maintain his Euro 2024 style despite missing two of his weapons, and paid for it – without their speed and ability to make something out of nothing, disaster struck.
While many (including myself) had serious doubts about de la Fuente’s ability to adapt – to the point of regretting the departure of former assistant coach Pablo Amo, who many believe was the real mastermind behind the Euro 2024 victory – he has returned brilliantly to his Spanish roots, bringing his own touch to the team.
Tiki-taka with a little magic on the side (Tiki-taka with a little magic on the wings).
La tiki taka: Midfield was key on Tuesday night, as it has been throughout the tournament and throughout Spain’s history.
This team dominated France and caused them countless problems and disappointments, which ultimately led to them becoming a shadow of the team we saw earlier in the tournament. Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo were excellent, but Rodri in particular was the team’s main player. Red.
The Manchester City star was fully back to his 2024 Ballon d’Or winning ways, lining up the middle, providing a stunning connection between front and back and even annoying the French players with some masterful play towards the end.
The defense was solid again, thanks to inspired performances from Aymeric Laporte, Pau Kubarsi, Pedro Porro, Marc Cucurella and Unai Simon – although the Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper probably robbed many Spanish fans of about three years with his performance tonight.
Magic in groups: Yamal had an up-and-down game, but the match showed flashes of his genius, including a brilliant penalty kick that put Spain ahead for good. Williams came on in the 83rd minute and looked promising enough for a cameo in Sunday’s final.
If Yamal appears at MetLife at full capacity, Red will have a good chance of earning a second star.
Ultimately, however, what will make this team more than a strange coincidence in 2010 and a complete echo in time is a win on Sunday at East Rutherford. What would make the situation even more dire is that she would be facing another European opponent with another one goal lead (England, looking at you).
But for me and many other Spanish fans, a win is a win, and who cares if we repeat what happened 16 years ago? At the end of the day, the only thing we want to repeat is the pride and exuberant joy of being world champions again.