THE REVENGE IS COMPLETE

 

Image Credit- The Telegraph.

Spain and the Netherlands are the two powerhouses of European football. Whenever these two teams meet, fireworks are expected for sure. The 2010 FIFA World Cup Final, which Spain won 1-0 after extra time, was one of the notable meetings between the two teams. However, nobody can ever forget the group-stage match between these two sides in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Interestingly, it was the first time that the previous FIFA World Cup finalists faced one another in the group stage.

In the first half of the game, Diego Costa grabbed a trailing leg from Stefan de Vrij's attempted tackle halfway. As a result, the Spanish were awarded a penalty, though it was quite visible that the defender did no wrong. Xabi Alonso scored the penalty kick for Spain, taking them into the lead. However, the Spanish were unable to maintain the lead until the half, when Robin van Persie saw Iker Casillas slightly off his line and scored a 15-yard diving looping header after Daley Blind's long cross from the left.

However, the real massacre happened in the second half. Blind helped the Netherlands score the second goal as well, as he set up Arjen Robben, who controlled the pass before coming inside to finish from ten yards out with his left foot. Twelve minutes later, Wesley Sneijder's free kick on the left gave the Netherlands another goal, which De Vrij headed in from a tight angle. Iker Casillas, the Spanish goalkeeper, protested that Van Persie had fouled him, but the goal was upheld, and Casillas was given a yellow card. Shortly after, Van Persie scored his second goal of the match by retrieving the ball and finishing into an empty net when Casillas miscontrolled a back pass from Sergio Ramos with his left leg. The humiliation on the face of Iker was quite visible now.

However, the slaughter stopped only after the fifth goal which was truly a masterclass. After receiving a pass from Wesley Sneijder close to the halfway line, Robben outran Casillas, Jordi Alba, and Ramos before using his left foot to slot the ball into the net from ten yards out.

In addition to being Spain's second-worst World Cup defeat following their 6-1 hammering of Brazil in 1950, the 5-1 score was the largest loss margin for a reigning champion in the FIFA World Cup. Unfortunately, the Spanish lost the next game as well and were thus eliminated from the group stage itself. For the Netherlands, the revenge was well and truly complete. Not only did they hammer the mighty Spanish, but they also went past the next round before getting knocked out by the Argentines in the semi-final.

To watch the Highlights of the Match, Click Here.