FIFA World Cup 2010: Top Five Players Who Can Decide The Final
Spain take on Netherlands in the World Cup final on Sunday, both teams have some impressive players but there are certain individuals in both teams who have the ability to decide the final outcome by a swing of their foot or a mistimed tackle in the penalty area.
David Villa is one of those players who are capable of deciding a match on their own. Villa has been impressive for Spain so far in the tournament. He has scored five out of Spain’s seven goals in the tournament. Villa is also the current contender for the golden ball which is given to the highest goal scorer in the FIFA World Cup competition. Villa’s influence on the Spain side has been immense, his darting outside to inside runs from the left wing have been quite destructive.
However, Spain have a problem in the shape of Fernando Torres. Torres and Villa have been unimposing together and every time Torres has been withdrawn for Spain, Villa has been much more effective. Torres did not start against Germany but Villa was heavily marked in that match and failed to feature prominently for the European Champions. Villa, who has had a terrific run of form so far will be looking to continue it into the final.
Spain’s midfielder Xavi is the best player of the tournament so far. He is one of those players in the Spanish side that makes it easy for players around him to play football, and showcase their individual talents. Xavi is an extremely under appreciated footballer. His strength lies in simplicity. As a footballer, Xavi just plays simple passes but his vision is impeccable and without his calming influence in the Spanish midfield, it will be safe to say that they will struggle to control possession.
A player who is not as effective as Xavi arguably but is equally exciting is Holland’s Wesley Sneijder. Sneijder is currently the joint top goal scorer of the tournament with five goals, his partner at the top of the goal scoring charts is none other than David Villa. Sneijder has been superb for the Dutch so far. His flawless displays have earned him praises from experts throughout the footballing world. His role for the Oranje, has been the similar to the one who plays at Inter Milan. He directs Netherlands’s attacking traffic and is an expert in playing the final ball.
Another player which can turn a match on its head not only because of his natural talent but also due to his detested capability to dive and scream on the field is Arjen Robben. After successfully pulling off a comeback to the World Cup from an injury against Brazil, he has been average so far. His only moments of magic have come in form of diving and feinting injury to get other players off. However, Robben did score against Uruguay in the semi-finals from a superbly planted header. He also has the ability to exploit Spain’s left back Capdevilla, who is famous for his lack of pace.
The last individual in this list of players is Xabi Alonso. Alonso who plays for Real Madrid is known by many as a weak link in the Spanish midfield along with Busquets because he brings nothing different to the Spanish world cup table. Statistics though, tell a different story. Out of a total number of 491 passes that Alonso has attempted in this World Cup, he has astonishingly completed 81 percent of them. This fact only reinforces the belief that Alonso is the best deep lying playmaker in the world today. He is also famous for his thunderbolt strikers towards the goal thus he should not be underestimated in that regard as well.
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