Sweet Victory for Spain; Wins Euro 2008 Title Over Germany

Spain finally has something to be proud of in the world of sports; they are the European Champions for 2008. They became victorious over the heavily favored German team in Vienna, Austria. This is an especially sweet victory because it is Spain's first major championship win in 44 years. The last time they won that crown was in 1964. Prior to today's win, they had lost to France in 1984, never advancing past the quarterfinal of any major competition since then.

The victory-giving goal came in the 33^rd minute when top striker Fernando Torres received the pass from Xavi Hernandez, then made his way pass opponents and goalkeeper Jens Lehmann to deposit a corner shot. It was all Spain in offense and defense. They had many more opportunities to score, but the 1-0 score was enough to lift them out of the decades of being branded as the underachieving football (soccer) nation of Europe.

The heavily favored and expected to win Germany did not show their depth in this game. Having won the title three times out of the thirteen tournaments, they were poised to win this one. However, major players such as Captain Michael Ballack, who was plagued by right calf injury, were simply missing in action. Although he played, Ballack did not appear to be able to put his teammates together to overcome Spain's great skills.

Germany's performance today reminded me of what Kobe and the Los Angeles Lakers did against the Boston Celtics in the bid for the 2008 NBA championship title. The Germans never really put together any run or attempted to threaten the Spaniards with offensive streaks. Yes, Spain's goalie Iker Casillas was awesome and did a great job. But the Germans never really did much to make him sweat. Like the Celtics in the NBA, the Spaniards worked hard and really earned this one.

Stunned German fans looked on with disbelief as Spain jubilantly took the trophy, with confetti and streamers showering them at the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna, Austria. Fireworks flashed across Madrid as the locals celebrated their nation's second title as the European champions. Had the Germans won today, they would have set a record as the only nation to capture the title four times. Better luck next time.

Source:
http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/8293962?MSNHPHMA