Spain, the European Champions, have their best chance of winning the World Cup in South Africa 2010 but who are their key players?
Spain won the 2008 European Championships and are a team that have formed a formidable international reputation over recent years as being very hard to beat. Despite being blessed with talent Spain have often underachieved but their current crop of star players are best placed to win the World Cup for the first time.
David Villa - Spain's Key Striker
David Villa won the golden boot at the 2008 European Championships and is one of the favourites to repeat this feat on the world stage. Villa recently signed for Catalan giants Barcelona for a reported £30m. He is currently the tournaments' joint top scorer alongside Wesley Sneijder of the Netherlands with five goals, one ahead of Germany's Miroslav Klose. Without him Spain would have surely struggled to reach the World Cup final.
Despite his prolific goal scoring record Villa is not a striker in the traditional sense. He often plays for Spain out on the left flank where he likes to drift into the space behind the full-back onto his strong right foot. He has been highly effective with this strategy and is only a single goal behind Raul who currently holds the international goal scoring record for Spain.
Carles Puyol – Key Defender and Leader
The formidable Carles Puyol has been the linchpin of the Spanish defence for a number of years. The 32 year old is the captain of his club side Barcelona and is viewed as one of the best defenders in the world. Despite being at the twilight of his career Puyol has lost none of his strength and is able to marshal his defensive counterparts extremely effectively.
In 2008 he formed an excellent partnership with Carlos Marchena as Spain conceded only three goals at the European Championships. He is now partnered by his Barcelona team mate Gerard Pique, who at 22 years of age, is maturing into a formidable centre half in his own right. Both have been key in Spain’s run to the World Cup final with Spain winning each of their last three games 1-0.
Andres Iniesta and Xavi – Key Midfield Partnership
The Barcelona pairing of Andres Iniesta and Xavi at the heart of the Spanish midfield is one of the best in world football. Both have been with club side Barcelona since teenagers and Xavi at 30 years of age is approaching 100 caps for his country, with Iniesta at four years his junior, approaching 50 games for Spain.
Iniesta and Xavi are key to the way in which Spain approach and play international football. Spain play a short passing game and often probe their opposition looking for the slightest opportunity to execute a key pass. Both Iniesta and Xavi are blessed with wonderful passing ability and their natural talents to read the game make them a constant threat.
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