Spanish Football News Blog

You might think the French fans would be grateful to Thierry Henry, their captain and record goalscorer, for making sure they qualified for the World Cup - albeit in somewhat unorthodox and controversial circumstances.

Not a bit of it, judging by the jeering and whistling that Henry received from his home crowd yesterday. A little disappointment would have been natural, in view of the rather bloodless way that France succumbed to their more fancied neighbours Spain. But this was personal. The man could have been guilty of sleeping with his team-mate’s girl, such was the hostility directed at him.
 
Some of the ill-feeling must date back to Henry’s infamous handball against Northern Ireland - a foul so heinous that even the French are embarrassed about it. But there is also a view that he embodies his team’s current problems, being a once-mighty force who is apparently dwindling towards mediocrity. He certainly compared poorly with the Spanish forwards - first David Villa, who sprung the off-side trap to score with ease after 20 minutes - and then the ever-sprightly Fernando Torres.

Spain were majestic for much of yesterday’s game. The first half was all about control, as Cesc Fabregas and Andres Iniesta took hold of the midfield and gradually squeezed the life out of France’s attacking play. The home side’s one real threat - the Bayern Munich playmaker Frank Ribery - made plenty of bustling runs, but he spent most of his time out on the right flank when he needed to be homing in on goal.

Spain weren’t creating bags of chances - in fact they only had two clear shots in the first half. But they were controlling possession, and given that both those shots happened to go in, there was no need to try anything rash. The result was all but settled on the stroke of the interval, when Sergio Ramos’s effort flicked the boot of Julein Escude and looped cruelly around the goalkeeper.

The second half produced more spectacle, as the Spanish maestros began showing off their tricks and flourishes. Torres replaced Villa and immediately began to harry France’s debutant Michael Ciani, who played his heart out in central defence but couldn’t keep up with the forward’s sheer pace. You would have bet on Torres to extend Spain’s lead but the final ball never quite fell for him and his one real shot was smothered by Hugo Lloris.

From a Premier League perspective, Rafa Benitez would at least have been relieved that Torres wasn’t put through a whole match. But the French defensive pairing of Patrice Evra and Bacary Sagna are both likely to be needed on Saturday, and both will feel heavy-legged after the run-around they got from Spain’s attacking midfielders. Jesus Navas, a young winger from Sevilla, replaced Iniesta just after the hour mark and spent the rest of the evening bombing up the right flank at tremendous speed.

Spain’s success took their record to 42 wins in the last 45 games, and their performance yesterday more than justified their billing as early World Cup favourites. France were disorganised and largely toothless, despite the late header that Florent Malouda directed onto a post. But at least they are going to South Africa - a position they owe to the much-maligned Henry.

Source: The Telegraph