Running right alongside Brazil 2014, this is my day-by-day story of how Spain won the last World Cup. You can catch up on previous posts.
These stories are from Spain: The Inside Story of La Roja’s Historic Treble, by Graham Hunter
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A few players, Reina, Busquets, Alonso and Piqué amongst them, see the day a tad earlier than the rest of us. They have permission to be up early and glued to satellite television at 3am South African time in order to catch the decisive Game Seven of the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. The series is tied 3-3 and the Spaniards are yelling for the Lakers given that, behind Kobe Bryant, Spanish world champion Pau Gasol is the team’s second most valuable player. The Lakers win and the decision to brave the freezing dawn is a good one. By mid-morning there is a spring in everyone’s step as the starting XI are reintegrated into training.
The daily press conferences are held in a lecture hall behind the gym. Today, we talk to Gerard Piqué and Xabi Alonso, but the tone has been set by the previous evening’s meeting between senior players and management.
Gerard Piqué: “While I understand our fans’ disappointment it was ridiculous that the Switzerland result brought criticism of our entire style of play. We played well but just didn’t score. Believe me, my chance looked easier than it was, but if that had gone in we would have then hit another two or three – guaranteed.
“We’ve won the European Championship, we were unbeaten for 35 games, we won every qualifying match and arrived here as many people’s favourites. You’d have to be pretty stupid to deduce that it’s our playing style that needs changing.
“As for the nonsense about doble pivote and Sergio Busquets, I didn’t hear anyone saying that when we beat Argentina and we played exactly the same way that day. Of course, then, everyone was praising Busi to the hilt. It’s just a shame that people are always looking for someone to blame.”
Xabi Alonso: “Anyone who starts having a go at the partnership between me and Busquets now, who didn’t before, is just being opportunistic because of the result.”