2010 World Cup Qualifying: Spain Tops Turkey 1-0
March 31st 2009 04:47
Days before the match opposing Spain's national selection to Turkey's, Fatih Terim said that he expected his players to come out hard and choke La Roja's midfield. This tactic effectively prevented the Spanish players from finding their rhythm in the first 30 minutes of the match, and two important saves from Iker Casillas in the opening stages allowed the game to stay scoreless.
The lack of Turkish threat from the 30th minute to the final whistle seemed to coincide with Arda Turan's disappearance after picking up a groin injury early in the game. With his leg constantly throbbing, the Galatasaray star wasn't as dangerous as he was in the beginning of the first half. Meanwhile, the Spanish players were slowly picking up steam after spending much of the first half patiently probing their visitors' defense.
The home side finally found the back of the net in the 60th minute with a bizarre goal scored by Barcelona defender Pique. After a free-kick, the ball somehow went over all the players in the box towards the far post only to bounce on Ramos' thigh, go back across the six-yard box where it was tapped in by Pique. After the goal, Spain immediately switched to a 4-5-1 formation with Juan Mata coming in for David Villa as Fernando Torres stayed alone in front. Leading by one goal against a team that had spent all its energy pressuring the midfield in the first half, the red shirts then proceeded to establish their possession game, a trademark of the Euro 2008 winning squad.
Similarly to the Euro's semi-final against Russia, Spain's passing game only drained the Turkish players even more. The entrance of David Silva for the final quarter brought a breath of fresh air on the field. Suddenly, the Spaniards had technically-gifted and agile wingers on both sides of the pitch, effectively canceling out Turkey's primary way of attack. The home side had a couple more scoring opportunities in the final minutes of the game on long-range shots but the 1-0 score was more than enough. Three points is all that matter after all.
Spain's line-up: Iker Casillas; Sergio Ramos, Raul Albiol, Gerard Pique, Joan Capdevila; Santi Cazorla (David Silva, 76th), Marcos Senna, Xabi Alonso, Xavi Hernandez; David Villa (Juan Mata, 63rd), Fernando Torres (Joseba Llorente, 87th).
The lack of Turkish threat from the 30th minute to the final whistle seemed to coincide with Arda Turan's disappearance after picking up a groin injury early in the game. With his leg constantly throbbing, the Galatasaray star wasn't as dangerous as he was in the beginning of the first half. Meanwhile, the Spanish players were slowly picking up steam after spending much of the first half patiently probing their visitors' defense.
The home side finally found the back of the net in the 60th minute with a bizarre goal scored by Barcelona defender Pique. After a free-kick, the ball somehow went over all the players in the box towards the far post only to bounce on Ramos' thigh, go back across the six-yard box where it was tapped in by Pique. After the goal, Spain immediately switched to a 4-5-1 formation with Juan Mata coming in for David Villa as Fernando Torres stayed alone in front. Leading by one goal against a team that had spent all its energy pressuring the midfield in the first half, the red shirts then proceeded to establish their possession game, a trademark of the Euro 2008 winning squad.
Similarly to the Euro's semi-final against Russia, Spain's passing game only drained the Turkish players even more. The entrance of David Silva for the final quarter brought a breath of fresh air on the field. Suddenly, the Spaniards had technically-gifted and agile wingers on both sides of the pitch, effectively canceling out Turkey's primary way of attack. The home side had a couple more scoring opportunities in the final minutes of the game on long-range shots but the 1-0 score was more than enough. Three points is all that matter after all.
Spain's line-up: Iker Casillas; Sergio Ramos, Raul Albiol, Gerard Pique, Joan Capdevila; Santi Cazorla (David Silva, 76th), Marcos Senna, Xabi Alonso, Xavi Hernandez; David Villa (Juan Mata, 63rd), Fernando Torres (Joseba Llorente, 87th).
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