Is Spain Back To Their Underachieving Level Or In Transition

Regarded as perennial underachievers for long, Spain broke the duck in 2008 when they secured the Euro championship beating Germany 1-0 in the final of the competition. The Spanish national team continued by winning the 2010 FIFA world cup in South Africa and also successfully defended their Euro championship in 2012. They have however gone into a decline and have been struggling to reach their potential. A shocking exit from the 2014 world cup at the group stage has been supported by series of inconsistent performances. Spain has now recorded five defeats in their last nine matches and this might just be the time for the fans to stick together and help the team through transition. With the issue of Catalan independence coming up, Spain have a lot to sought out in-house but it must also be stated that most of the highly rated top players are off their peak while some others have retired from international football. David Villa, Xabi Alonso, Xavi and Puyol are notable names.

Despite the inconsistent form and recent loss to Germany, Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque is fully confident there is a bright future in the team and he believes they will come good after this transition period. The 63 year old experienced coach is looking to rebuild the Spanish side to become a strong force again in world football and it is expected to take some time before the La Rojas can get it right again. Spain will need a collection of players playing at their best once again to get back to where they were.

Despite promising talents in the Spain national team squad, it will definitely be difficult for the side to return back to that level they played with. Although the collective effort of all players must be commended, Barcelona playing at their peak and dominating Europe did a lot in helping Spain reach the level they played at. With at least five to six regular starters from Barcelona, it’s difficult to deny that fact. It however didn’t come as a coincidence as Barcelona and Spain ruled in the same period and the decline of Barcelona clearly showed how much the national team has declined. Owing to the fact that the national team played a similar style with Barcelona, that outcome was expected. Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are the three top Spanish clubs and they are definitely not doing enough to rise the same generation of Spanish players like Barcelona did which eventually favoured the national team. The movement of so many Spanish players abroad will probably not do much in helping the La Rojas reach that level they will like to get to. Germany recently showed the same spirit producing many national team players from Bayern Munich during the world cup.

Players moving abroad can however be the major cause of the downfall of so many great national teams but the La Rojas have the talents required to make it again but more commitment will be needed now to form a formidable squad with the likes of De Gea, Alba, Martinez, Busquet, Koke, Fabregas, Silva, Alcacer, Costa and many others.