Soccer: I have the attributes of Messi in his Prime

Chapter 524: Spain Wins 3-0, Del Bosque's Tactics Work

On June 15th, the second round of the Euro 2016 group stage kicked off.

France's slow start continued, as they struggled against Albania, the weakest team in their group. Despite dominating, they couldn't score in the 90 minutes of regular time. Giroud even hit the post once. Just when everyone thought they were going to be held to a draw, France suddenly came alive in stoppage time. Griezmann and Payet scored two quick goals, leaving both the Albanian team and the fans in shock.

If they had this kind of strength, why wait until the last minute to show it?

Though it wasn't a pretty win, France secured their second victory and, with Switzerland and Romania playing to a draw, France locked in first place in the group and qualified for the knockout rounds early. Now they could start thinking about their potential opponents.

The English team also showed some improvement in their second match, where they narrowly defeated Wales 2-1 in a UK derby. Bale scored first, but Vardy and Sturridge found the net for England, giving them the victory.

It seems England may struggle in international tournaments, but they know how to handle domestic rivalries.

After defeating their strongest competitor, Wales, England topped Group B with 4 points. However, Wales and Slovakia both had 3 points each, so England couldn't relax just yet. To guarantee their advancement, they needed at least a draw against Slovakia in the next round. If they lost, they could fall to third place and depend on other group results to qualify.

In Group C, Germany faced off against Poland. Despite having the upper hand, Germany hit a brick wall. Poland, despite being dominated, held on with strong defense, and neither team managed to score. The match ended in a 0-0 draw, and both teams walked away with a point.

With 4 points each, Germany led the group thanks to a better goal difference. Both teams had a solid chance of advancing to the knockout rounds.

When it came time for Group D, all eyes were on Spain once again. Although most people believed Lin Quan wouldn't be playing, some hopeful fans still clung to the chance that he might appear in the starting lineup or at least on the bench.

But they were disappointed. Once again, Del Bosque didn't include Lin Quan in the squad.

With this, the fans were forced to accept the media's reports: Lin Quan was really going to miss the Euros.

Turkey's coach, thrilled that Lin Quan wasn't in Spain's lineup, stuck firmly to his original plan, opting for a 4-3-3 formation to go toe-to-toe with Spain.

This was exactly what Del Bosque was hoping for—if Turkey wanted to attack, Spain was more than happy to respond.

In this match, Spain looked like a completely different team, especially the forwards, who seemed to have found their form overnight. They finally knew how to score.

In the 34th minute of the first half, after a string of beautiful passes, Spain's attack shifted to the left wing. Nolito dribbled to the byline and delivered a perfect cross. A Turkish defender made a crucial mistake, missing his header, allowing Morata to swoop in and head the ball into the net.

1-0 for Spain!

With their spirits lifted, Spain ramped up the pressure on Turkey. As the Turks grew more frustrated and desperate, their defense started to falter. Just two minutes after the first goal, another defensive error occurred. Turkish defender Topal tried to head the ball clear but only succeeded in passing it directly to Nolito, who, shocked at the gift, quickly composed himself and slotted the ball into the bottom corner.

2-0 for Spain!

The quick back-to-back goals severely dampened Turkey's morale. Their coach was pacing the sidelines, frantically shouting instructions, but it was no use.

In the second half, Turkey made some changes, bringing on Dortmund's Nuri Sahin to replace Leverkusen's Hakan Çalhanoğlu. However, the substitution had little effect—Sahin, no longer the bright young star he once was, couldn't turn the tide.

In the 48th minute, Spain produced another beautiful piece of play. Iniesta received a pass from Busquets, evaded a challenge, and drove forward. Spotting a gap in Turkey's defense, he threaded a precise through ball to Alba, who was charging into the box. The Turkish goalkeeper rushed out to close down the angle, but Alba, rather than shooting, unselfishly passed the ball across the goal to Morata, who tapped it into the empty net.

3-0 to Spain!

With that, Spain extended their lead, and Morata completed his brace in the Euros. After scoring his second goal, Morata was ecstatic. The weight of outside criticism had been crushing him, and he'd begun to doubt his own ability. His agent had also told him that Real Madrid scouts were watching his performances, evaluating whether to bring him back from Juventus. Failing to impress in this match could mean he'd miss his chance to return to the Bernabéu.

After being heavily criticized for his poor showing in the first match, Morata's two goals transformed him into a hero. Many Spanish fans now saw him as the team's new savior, hoping he could lead Spain to new glory in Lin Quan's absence.

Fueled by the fans' cheers and his desire to impress Real Madrid, Morata became the most energetic player on the pitch. Even after scoring twice, he wasn't satisfied and continued fighting for every ball, hoping to secure a hat trick.

In the 49th minute, he came close, heading the ball just wide of the post.

In the 64th minute, Spain won a free kick, but Ramos' shot hit the wall and went out for a corner. Both Morata and Ramos jumped to challenge for the ball, but neither managed to get the decisive touch.

In the 68th minute, Morata had his best chance to complete the hat trick. Spain's passing play found Iniesta, who fed the ball to Morata. But in his eagerness, Morata took a long shot instead of continuing his run, and the Turkish goalkeeper saved it.

After that, Del Bosque decided to make some substitutions. David Silva and Cesc Fabregas were taken off, signaling that Spain was ready to cruise to victory.

Without their midfield support, Morata and Nolito had fewer opportunities, and the score remained 3-0 until the final whistle. Spain, despite being without their key player Lin Quan, secured back-to-back wins and qualified for the knockout stage with one game to spare.

While scoring three goals might have been routine for the old Spain, for this team, without Lin Quan, it was an impressive achievement. In fact, it was the largest margin of victory so far in the tournament.

Most teams in the Euros were strong, making large goal margins rare. In prestigious tournaments like the Euros and World Cup, the competition was often much fiercer than in club tournaments like the Champions League.

In club football, players are essentially employees—doing their job for their paycheck. Only when titles or honors are on the line do coaches need to motivate them with extra incentives. However, in national team tournaments like the Euros or World Cup, players are driven by national pride. They don't need extra motivation to give their all; they come in already fired up.

That's why many fans find international tournaments less entertaining—there's less goal-scoring and more physical battles. Defensive intensity is high, making it difficult to score, unlike in club matches where goals are far more frequent.

Another issue is that national teams don't have as much time to train together, so their chemistry and cohesion aren't as good as club teams. To counter this, many national teams adopt the systems of certain clubs. For instance, Spain often relied on Barcelona's midfield structure, and Italy leaned on Juventus' defensive lineup.

…

While Spain was busy thrashing Turkey, good news came from another match: Croatia, despite leading 2-0, was held to a 2-2 draw by the Czech Republic after a last-minute equalizer.

This result meant that Spain only needed a draw against Croatia in their next game to secure first place in their group.

After the victory over Turkey, Del Bosque was feeling confident. He praised his players once again. When asked about Lin Quan, Del Bosque repeated his usual response:

"Lin is ready to play whenever we need him."

But by now, most people had stopped paying attention to that line.

"It seems we underestimated Spain's strength. Even without Lin, they still have a very strong squad, and those top players should never be taken lightly."

"Morata isn't as bad as we thought. His poor performance in the first game might have just been an off day."

The criticism of Spain online began to fade, replaced by more positive comments.

It's the usual pattern with some fans—win, and they'll praise you; lose, and they'll attack you.

In the following matches from Groups E and F, both Italy and Belgium won their games.

Italy secured their second win and qualified for the knockout stage with a game to spare. Belgium's win brought them up to 3 points, improving their chances of advancing. A win against Sweden in their next match would see them through.

Sweden and Ireland, with just one point each, would need to fight hard in their final game to have any chance of advancing.

Group F, meanwhile, was intriguing. Both matches in the second round ended in draws. Portugal and Austria played to a goalless draw, while Hungary drew 1-1 with Iceland.

These results benefited Hungary, who now had 4 points. A draw in their next game would guarantee their qualification, and they even had a chance to top the group. The other three teams—Portugal and Iceland with 2 points each, and Austria with just 1—would need to go all out in their final games to have any hope of progressing.

Portugal, in particular, faced the real possibility of elimination if they drew with Hungary.

This fueled even more criticism of Cristiano Ronaldo. While Portugal's squad wasn't as strong as teams like Germany, France, or Spain, they weren't weak enough to struggle this much. Ronaldo had failed to score in two matches, leading many to question his form.

At his age, this might well be his last European Championship. By the time the next one rolls around, he'll be 35, and it's unclear how much of his ability and form will remain.

If he doesn't seize this opportunity to push for a good result, he might never get another chance.

"Man, when it comes to national team honors, Ronaldo and Messi really are two of a kind."

"Portugal is weak overall, but Argentina isn't. Messi's just had bad luck—either a bad coach like Maradona or tough opponents like Spain have stood in his way. If the stars had aligned just a little better, he might have lifted the World Cup by now."

"As for Portugal, there's not much Ronaldo can do. Sure, he hasn't been great, but look at Ibrahimovic—he hasn't carried Sweden either. Modern football is a team game. No one player can win it all on their own anymore."

Still, some people weren't ready to accept that. After all, there was one player in the world who could change the outcome of a game all by himself.

As the group stage neared its end, the main contenders for the Euro 2016 crown began to emerge.

"At this point, it looks like Spain, Germany, and France are the top contenders. The other teams don't have much of a chance."

"Hah, are you really going to leave out Italy?"

"Don't forget about the mighty England—we're still undefeated!"

That comment made everyone laugh, and the internet was suddenly filled with lively, cheerful banter.

(End of Chapter)

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