Spain Coach Wants Place in History
Spain coach, Vicente del Bosque, says he wants his place in history as his side continued toward their goal of winning the World Cup.
If Spain do win the competition, they would become one of the only sides in history to have won their continental competition (the 2008 European Championships) and the World Cup back to back. Del Bosque would also go down as one of the greatest ever Spanish bosses.
Spain could easily do this although they are the third favourites at this moment in time to lift the Jules Rimet trophy. They keep the ball better than anyone else and they pass it around better than anyone else, but Argentina and Brazil have created a much bigger impression on the tournament so far, looking more dynamic and scoring more.
Del Bosque is blessed to have such a gifted and talented squad and there will be many who argue that you could put virtually anyone in charge of this Spanish team and get them to play well. However, he does a lot of work off of the field, which has won him praise and respect, and all del Bosque seems to want is glory for his country.
So Far
So far Spain have played very well at the World Cup. They have done just what is needed but little more. This has led them into a quarter-final match up against Paraguay, which they are expected to win with ease.
The real test for the side will come when they meet either Argentina and, assuming they win that encounter, Brazil. The pressure will be piled on at that stage and so far pressure does not appear to have been Spain's best friend. They have all of the talent and quality needed to win a match against either of these sides but they do look a little but vulnerable when they are right up against it.
There have been some small criticisms of del Bosque from within the Spanish media that the manager is not active enough when the team is on the field. If he was seen by the side of the pitch barking his orders out then it would be quite contrary to what we normally see and it would win him a great deal more respect from his doubters.
Confidence
Spain has a lot of things in common with other successful teams at the World Cup. However, not many players can say they have the experience of knowing what winning a major competition feels like. All of the Spanish side will remember how it felt when they won Euro 2008 and this is something that the coach is likely to keep drilling into his team.
The confidence of being a tournament winner will help raise the spirits of the players, who may have started to doubt themselves after a rough start to the tournament, including a loss to Switzerland and some unconvincing wins over Chile, Honduras, and now Portugal.
This is where del Bosque needs to step in and brand his influence onto the team. He is the one person who can command the respect and attention of the Spanish team and therefore he is the one person who can raise confidence if it's starting to slip.
Advice
Match by match is the best way to go with this Spanish team. They are favourites to beat Paraguay and don't hesitate in backing them. However, be a little more cautious for the semi-finals and the final if the side manage to get that far.
In-play action from now on seems to be the best route although if you can get some form of special bet on Spain winning the World Cup and then retaining their Euro crown it could be worth a punt.
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