2)Tiki-Taxi for the doubters.
3)Tiki-Taka delights, again.
Just occasionally, think Brazil 1970, England 3 v 6 Hungary 1953, the game of football transcends the ordinary and lapses into the fantastic mode.
Add to that , Spain at Euro 2012, because in this game the World Champions put to bed any argument to their being boring in a performance of sustained brilliance that brought them the Henri Delaunay trophy in a 4-0 besting of a talented Italian side, and should have silenced any critics that are foolish enough to question their style.
Del Bosque had been true to his belief - Spain started with Fabregas as the "false 9" and no putative striker on the pitch. Prandelli's Italy were almost stubborn in response - no changes for them.
As the game settled into a rhythm, what was immediately obvious was that the Spaniards were more than confident, knocking around a flurry of one and two touch passes that bordered on the outrageous - constantly threatening, immediately comfortable - it felt like they were showing what they are - supremely confident in their ability.
Italy were forced onto the back foot, frustrated to rely on breakaways to a policed Balotelli and Cassano, and often forced to suck up the response to those failed raids.
What was noticeable in this first half was the relevance of what they were doing - each and every first time lay-off almost inevitably led to a position controlled, or a chance created. The metronomic efficiency of the pass and move was not just strangling, but smothering Italy.
Coupled with that, the high fast press was forcing Andrea Pirlo, Italy's orchestrator, deeper and deeper, and no team scores or even threatens from 70m to the goal.
Spain's opener was an absolute vindication of Del Bosque's set up.
From an intense shuttling of short passes, Andres Iniesta played a sublime ball to Cesc Fabregas, overlapping outside on the right. He still had some work to do - his excellent first touch took him outside Chiellini, and a fantastic cut back saw the advancing David Silva head the cross into the top left corner. A truly stunning goal, which was still rising as it hit the top corner.
A word here on top class players lost to abroad.
Whilst we've assimilated the like of Silva into the PL, we've also lost some gems. For me, and recognise this is personal, this is the best player ever who has gone elsewhere (abroad). Thierry Henry to Barca was a stunner, but Cesc following him out the door from a cosy Arsenal , cost Wenger, and us fans, far more.
Don't forget, this is the Xavi Hernandez of the next 10 yrs. Cesc Fabregas is a player who plays with his head up - one who will stop the ball and watch his opponent slide past, to terrific effect.
I don't need to tell you about the specifics of the game, simply get the highlights here and watch it again. It's worth it.
Better still, watch it all all again.
TEMPO??
One of the first things noticeable in this performance was the Tempo of the game. Regular readers will have heard me bang on about this before. Think back to our best performances last year.
Arsenal and Tottenham at Home, Fulham Away, and what becomes clear is that we did all of these performances at a far higher tempo than some of our lesser successful ones.
Pass and move + fast pace (higher tempo) = greater reward. Spain did precisely this.
Whilst we're talking Tempo, think on this.
Fernando Torres ended up with the Golden Boot. For someone who'd been having a bad season, he's ended up having a rather good season.
Shock/Horror...............Golden boot goes to Spain's non-striker team.Smirk, and move on.
As beaten finalists, Italy can be proud of their team. From the eternally combative Daniele de Rossi, to the sublime (but negated) Andrea Pirlo, topped off by the fizz/bang/pop of Il Postino, Mario Balotelli, this is a team that did credit to their nation.
So , when we look back at an excellent Tournament, what can we remember as stand-out moments. What about these.
Best Player.
Joint award to Andrea Pirlo and Andres Iniesta. From the sublime to the ridiculous.Think upward.
Best Match.
Germany 1 v Italy 2
The putative tournament winners were shocked and horrified to be turned over by a team playing at their creative best.
Highlight.
Pirlo's " Panenka ". Sergio Ramos doing it, too.
Best Quote.
Pirlo versus Joe Hart. " Their goalkeeper looked fired-up. I thought 'Now I give him the spoon.'".
Best Goal.
Jakub Blaszczykowski's equaliser against the Russian machine. Onward Polska!
Worst Moment.
Every single kick off that went 10,9,8,7...........etc. Hate it, hate it, hate it. Kill it.
So, a wonderful tournament that shows Michel Platini why he's so wrong to go from 16 to 24. A tournament where we saw why Spain are indeed a " team within a generation ", and moreover, one I've thoroughly enjoyed.
See you in a couple of weeks, when I'll get up and running on Swansea City.
Have a nice Summer break.
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