Morata, stubborn Enrique, the best record of the tournament since 2012, and a fan who loves and hates. For Spanish football, the past month can be described as painful and happy, there are regrets and relief, penalty shootouts against Italy were blocked out of the final door, in such a way to bid farewell to the European Championship stage, may be the beginning of the revival.
Before Spain's "golden generation" won the 2008 European Championship, the 2010 World Cup, and the 2012 European Championship, it also experienced the 2004 European Championship group out, and the 2006 World Cup stopped in the round of 16, and it is inevitable that a great era will experience pain before it comes. This Spanish team is very young, Enrique still has a lot of time to transform, a little more patience, and the next glorious period may come inadvertently.
Morata knelt down to celebrate the equalizer. Figure /IC PHOTO
Morata defeated Morata
Since embarking on the path of professional football, Morata seems to be a collection of contradictions. Born in the youth training of Atletico, he joined the "sworn enemy" Real Madrid. The performance was mediocre and was loaned to Juve, and the excellent form was bought back by the old owner. Leaving Chelsea suffered a low point, and for good reason, atletico would be favored. Just adapted to the beginning of his career, he inexplicably switched to Serie A again.
To date, Morata has never played for a club for more than 2 consecutive seasons, often squandering scoring opportunities as a main player, always scoring key goals after coming off the bench, the management's attitude towards him is good and bad, and the fans love and hate him. This contradictory state of affairs has been perpetuated at this European Championship.
Sweden was forced to draw in the first match, and Morata, who wasted many opportunities, suffered a lot of boos at the home of Sevilla, and even some fans sang songs satirizing the striker. In the second leg against Poland, Morata's goal helped the team to get a point with difficulty, and the public opinion situation was momentarily reversed.
The good times did not last long, Spain beat Slovakia to reach the round of 16, and Morata, who had conceded a penalty, once again fell to the bottom. In the quarter-finals against Croatia, the opponents pressed the whistle to fight until overtime, and when some fans were desperate, Morata stepped forward to score the counter-goal and save the team.
In contrast to Italy's "feud bureau", Morata went from hero to sinner in a few tens of minutes. The team was unable to score goals for a long time, and it was Morata who came off the bench to make a contribution, retaining the suspense of the game. In the penalty shootout, Morata, who was entrusted with heavy responsibilities, lost the penalty and caused Spain to miss the final.
Spain may not have been able to break through from the group without Morata's key points recovered; without Morata's extra-time goal, the "Matadors" had stopped in the round of 16; without Morata's substitute contribution, the Italians could have settled the battle in 90 minutes. But another point, without Morata's penalty, Spain may have returned to the European Championship final.
Morata breaks the door instantly. Figure /IC PHOTO
Enrique's stubbornness has both gains and losses
The 2014 World Cup group did not qualify, the 2016 European Championship and the 2018 World Cup stopped in the round of 16, how brilliant the glorious period of the "Matador Army" three consecutive championships, how tragic it was when it fell. After the world cup change in Russia, the Spanish Football Association put the responsibility of revival in the hands of Enrique.
Enrique's stubbornness is well known, and long before the start of this European Championship, his series of operations have provoked public opinion in Spain. UEFA allowed all participating teams to bring 26 people to the European Championship, but only Enrique brought 24 people, on the grounds that only 18 to 19 people can usually play in the competition, which is useless. In every previous World Series, Real Madrid players have been the main force of the Spanish team, but Enrique has not brought anyone, and even refused to call up Real Madrid captain Ramos.
The European Championship officially kicked off, with Enrique putting years of goalkeeper De Gea on the bench, playing the young Unay Simon. Let the newly naturalized Manchester City star Laporte start the game and become the core of the defense. The 18-year-old Pedri sits in the main role in midfield, becoming the youngest player in the team's history to appear in the World Series. The frontcourt has absolute trust in Morata, Moreno and Olmer, and resolutely does not change the position.
'Morata has the fighting spirit, the character, the ability, and I don't think there's any national team manager who doesn't want or appreciate a player like Morata, who is grossly underrated in the national team." Even if the boos at home are harsh and the criticism from the outside world is fierce, Enrique is not impressed, and even says that Spain's starting lineup is Morata + 10 other people.
Enrique's stubbornness to the squad, especially the use of Morata, has certainly paid off, with Spain achieving the best world series record since 2012, setting a team-record goal record in a single World Series, and Morata also surpassing Torres with 6 goals to become the all-time european cup top scorer of the "Matador Army".
At the same time, there are many places to summarize. The team's midfield control is beyond doubt, but the opportunity to grasp the opportunity in the front is slightly insufficient, this Spanish team does not have a talented midfield like Xavi and Iniesta, nor a forward killer like Villa and Torres, even if there is luck to go all the way to the top 4, but the lineup and tactics still need to be slowly polished.
The president of the Spanish Football Association comforted Enrique after the match. Figure /IC PHOTO
Walk on the road to rejuvenation and the light ahead
Advancing as the second in the group, he played 120 minutes in three consecutive knockout matches, 1 extra time promotion, 1 penalty win, 1 penalty shoot-out defeat, and finally was blocked out of the final by the champion Italy. Compared with low pre-match expectations, the Spanish team has already exceeded their quota.
With several celebrities commenting on it, Iniesta was proud of this Spanish team, and Ramos said that the team members shocked and touched the whole country. The Spanish Football Association did not complain at all, and the president of the Spanish Football Association, Ruby Yales, participated in the whole game, and he saw the persistence of the veterans, the bright eyes of the recruits, and the maturity of the team.
Arguably, while the way out is regrettable, most people see hope and a future in this Spanish team. The steady performance of veterans such as Busquets, Alba, Kork and Azpilicueta is gratifying, and they are still guarding the glory of the team against the background of the team's poor record for many years and the gradual decline of the "golden generation". Thanks to the presence of these veterans, young people began to shoulder heavy responsibilities on the stage of the World Series.
The 18-year-old Pedri, who made the shadow of Xavi, Iniesta and others, only made his first appearance for the national team in March this year, and as a result, he only had a one-minute break in six games, including three extra-time matches, and a number of passing statistics were at the top of this European Championship. As Enrique said: "At the age of 18, I have not seen it in the World Cup, the European Championships, the Olympic Games, not even Iniesta. ”
Born in 1996 Rodri, Olmer, 1997 born Unai Simon, and Pedri, Garcia, Ferran Torres 3 "post-00s" players, Enrique let people see the rise of the young generation in Spain, who can assert that this group of young people can not become the "new golden generation" of Spanish football in the future?
Beijing News reporter Xu Bangyin
Edited by Wang Xichong Proofreader Wu Xingfa