For 120 minutes, Spain had only one thing in mind – pass their way around the Russia defence. There was nothing else they were trying. No intercepting passes and no shooting from long range.
It was all about keeping the ball and trying to get past the 10 man Russia defence. That’s all there was in this game was. Spain completed over 1000 passes today vs Russia but managed to get as many goals as the host nation – one.
La Furia Roja were unable to do anything to break down the Russia defence. They took the lead early in the first half thanks to an own goal and from then, they sat back and just held on to the ball.
When things were not going their way, they didn’t bother switching positions, crossing the ball in and not even chipping the ball over the defence. Situation could have been different if they a Plan B.