Euro 2008: The Reign of Spain

We know we’ve been a bit slack on the posting front lately, but waddya want from us? Check that post count on the right, it’s a record month so enough with the guilt trips already.

Ahem, but now onto more serious business and last night’s Spain v Germany Euro 2008 final of which we can all agree that football was the winner, a shift in the European power base may be happening and that Spain, one of the most attractive teams in the tournament, finally got their just desserts.

And a million other such worthy platitudes.

Further observations? ...Yup we’ve got a couple, Spain were undoubtedly the better team on the night, pleasing on the eye throughout and perhaps should have scored even more. However the first ten minutes were nervous times and required a subtle tactical switch to stop Germany rampaging down the left. Also had David Villa been sent off for that mini-butt (induced by Lukas Podolski who should also have gone off) it might have been a whole different story.

But here’s the key moment for us and where the Spanish won it. Football is all about momentum and just after the hour mark a mini-German revival threatened to put Spain under the cosh and a goal against them then might have raised all the old doubts and shifted the balance of power in the game. An equaliser would surely have tested Spain’s both resolve and their nerve to the utmost.

However Luis Aragones' made key substitutions to snuff out that revival, Spain found their rhythm, German heads went down again and the rest is history. Aragones’ decisions as much as any player on the pitch actually won this tournament for the Spanish and he will undoubtedly be made a living (if slightly racist) saint for his trouble.

Still we couldn’t say farewell to Euro 2008 (one of the finest tournaments in living memory) without a final word from ‘Angry’ Jens Lehman. Now Jens is a man of strong convictions, convictions which often fly in the face of reality, but strong ones nonetheless.

As the collective Spanish hangover began and the German tears were finally drying, Jens (who'd even give the Aussies a run for their money in a bad loser bellyache- off), was straight into full on rant-a-quote mode blaming Deutschland’s defeat on the man in black:

“What was disappointing in my opinion was the performance of the referee, who didn't really fancy us Germans.” Herr Lehman managed to follow that up with the rather surreal, “I'm not the kind of person to blame other people.”

It’s not clear whether this represents the barmy shot stopper’s final tourney or indeed his parting shot for international football, but we urge you, Jens, don’t retire, we’d miss those crazy quotes far too much.