By Sunday evening, one football team will walk away with their country's first ever World Cup. The two teams with the most World Cup wins, but no championships will square off in surely the most anticipated battle in recent Cup history. It's La Roja versus the Flying Dutchmen, Spain against the Netherlands.
The number two country in the world against the number four, respectively. For Spain, they have proven their talent up and down the field, from GK Iker Casillas making some world-class saves in big spots, to goals being netted by striker David Villa all the way to defender Carles Puyol. Fernando Torres, thought to be one of Spain's strongest players, has been shaky of late, coming on in the 80th minute of the semi-final match, only to be snubbed of a pass by midfielder Pedro. I think Spain is a very aggressive team, and if played right, can wear down the Netherlands defense and score late as they did against Germany for the killing blow.
The Netherlands, still undefeated or untied in the Cup have proven they want to be world champions. They are as hungry as any team I've seen to hoist the Cup above their heads. In 2006, Italy and France took the game to penalty kicks, one of the most amazing Cup finishes to date. Even if this game does not go to PKs, it will be more exciting and more nerve-wracking than any match in the history of the sport. Captain Gio van Bronckhorst will lead the Orange into action after his goal of the tournament in the semifinal. Strikers Arjen Robben and Dirk Kuyt have had a stellar run so far, and aren't ready to go home with a silver medal.
Final score, 2-1 Spain. If it goes into penalty kicks, this could be one of my last posts, since I'm not sure I could handle the stress and magnitude of that.
Game time Sunday at 2:30pm, from Soccer City in Johannesburg on ABC.
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