Spain won its third straight major soccer title Sunday, routing Italy 4-0 in the European Championship final and making it look all too easy.
After critics had called this Spain team boring at Euro 2012, the most one-sided final in the tournament’s history was a perfect response.
Goals from David Silva and Jordi Alba in the first half gave Spain a convincing lead. Fernando Torres and fellow substitute Juan Mata scored in the last six minutes to turn victory into a rout.
Italy’s task was tough enough with 11 players, and it became impossible with just 10 after the 64th minute. All its substitutes were used when midfielder Thiago Motta, who had only been on the pitch for seven minutes, was taken off due to injury.
“We respect [Italy] very much. They were a great rival, but we took control of the game as time went by,” Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said.
The victory lifted Spain to a record third straight major title, after winning Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup. The hat trick of titles is an unprecedented feat for a European team, as is successfully defending the championship.
Spain even allowed Italy the majority of first-half possession, yet its trademark quick passing game was lethal when required. The second was almost entirely one-way traffic.
“Tonight, there was no contest, they were too superior — so the bitterness at losing this final is only relative,” Italy’s captain and goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon said.
His Spanish counterpart as keeper and skipper, Iker Casillas, also was outstanding in keeping Italy’s attack at bay for his 10th consecutive clean sheet in tournament knockout matches.
The victory was the most comprehensive in a European Championship final, beating West Germany’s 3-0 win over the Soviet Union in 1972.
Not only has Spain won every knockout game since losing to France in the second round of the 2006 World Cup, but goalkeeper Iker Casillas hasn’t allowed a goal in that 10-game span.
The last player to beat him is such an important match was Zinedine Zidane, and he retired after that tournament. Sunday’s win was a record 100th for Casillas in international soccer."
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