It’s been almost one month since South Africa and Mexico got the FIFA World Cup started in Soccer City. This Sunday – 63 games later – the Netherlands and Spain close up shop with what could be an instant classic.
This will mark the first time that either one of these two countries will win the FIFA World Cup Trophy (that’s the trophy’s name); becoming just the eighth team to win the tournament. This will be Spain’s first time in the final game, while the Netherlands played the role of bridesmaid on two occasions in the `70s.
Here are five keys to watch in Sunday’s match.
The Netherlands’ defense
The defense displayed from the Dutch in South Africa has been good –
except when they give up goals. In the quarterfinal match against
Brazil, the Netherlands’ defense failed to close in on Felipe Melo. He
was able to send a low pass to Robinho who then scored to put Brazil up
1-0. The Netherlands made the same mistake against Uruguay, and Diego
Forlan punished them with a beautiful strike from distance.
They’ll be
playing a Spanish side that thrives on finding those open gaps in the
defense to score goals. If the Dutch wish to celebrate in Amsterdam, the
defense has to plug those holes quickly.
Spain’s possession
Spain’s defense has been stingy in the World Cup – they’ve produced
three straight shutouts and have only given up two goals in the entire
tournament. That’s not a testament to a great Spanish defense, but to a
great offense. Spain’s philosophy is the key to great defense is a great
offense. Not that the Spanish are lighting up the scorecard, but they
are keeping possession of the ball. Spain has won the possession battle
in their three elimination games, and will look to continue that trend
against the Netherlands.
Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben
The Netherlands’ offense will be spurred by these two gentlemen. Both
players tallied in their semifinal win over Uruguay, and Sneijder is
tied with five goals for the Golden Boot award. Both these guys are
going to have to do their best to keep the ball away from Spain to
reduce the possession. And when they get the chance, both Sneijder and
Robben will have to do their best to put points on the board.
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| Like a Phil Niekro knuckler |
David Villa
The FC Barcelona striker is currently tied with Sneijder with five goals
in the race for the Golden Boot – the award for the top goal-scorer in
the World Cup. Before the semis against Germany, Villa had scored in
five straight games. The way the Dutch have been leaving gaps on
defense, Villa will be more than happy to fill them himself and score a
goal – and hopefully win the World Cup and the Boot.
The Jabulani
As the official soccer ball of the FIFA World Cup, the Jabulani ball has
received tons of criticism from players and coaches alike. The ball
seems to have a “knuckle effect,” which makes long range shots
unpredictable – so the criticism states.
It wasn’t the case for Dutchman
Giovanni Von Bronckhorst, who had a beauty of strike for the
Netherlands’ first goal against Uruguay. Unfortunately for his
teammate, goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg, the equalizing strike from
Forlan did seem to take a “knuckle effect.”
The last thing FIFA wants is
for the final game to be ruined because of Adidas’s Jabulani.
One last piece of important information to note; Paul has picked Spain
to be the world’s new champions. Paul is the “oracle octopus” from
Germany that has correctly picked the winner of all of his country’s
games. He predicted Germany’s four wins, and also predicted their losses
to Serbia and Spain.
This article appears in Jul 8-14, 2010.