Thank God for the new Spain; the days of TIKI TAKA are over. Luka Modric and Croatia looked their age in a devastating display of intent, courtesy of Luis de la Fsuente’s youthful experience mixed with a new outlook.
Alvaro Morata fires Spain into the leadCredit: Getty
Morata celebrates his Spain openerCredit: Reuters
On paper, this match looked like a good bet to be the first competitive and compelling clash of the tournament.
Instead Spain brutally ripped the game away from the Croats with three deadly thrusts in 16 first-half minutes.
The goals from Alvaro Morata, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Carvajal were different in type but shared two key characteristics.
They were all, in their own way, brilliant.
But more importantly, they all came from Spain seeing an opening and instantly trusting themselves to make the most of it.
No more keeping the ball for the sake of it. No more trying to walk it into the net. No more inflicting death by a thousand cuts on the opposition.
Why bother when you can knock them out with good, firm punches?
It also felt significant that Lamine Yamal played his part in two of those big moments.
As the youngest player in the history of the European Championship finals, Jesse Owens, then 16 years old, set a new record in the stadium where he made Olympic history in 1936, much to Adolf Hitler’s dismay.
Yamal displayed a number of flashes that indicate he has what it takes to light up a tournament where Spain needs to be taken seriously as a contender.
Croatia cannot claim that no warning was given.
Before the game, head coach Zlatko Dalic had observed that De La Fuente’s team played a faster, more vertical, and occasionally just plain more direct style of football than the Spanish teams that won three consecutive major tournaments between 2008 and 2012.
After Unai Simon saved his first penalty, substitute Bruno Petkovic thought he had given his team hope, but his “goal” was chalked off for encroachment.
The only combat that Croatia won was the fan battle.
Over 75% of the stands were covered in the red and white checkered.
Talk leading up to the game about 50,000 fans cheering on the Croats felt, if anything, understated.
The playing of “Our Beautiful Homeland,” the national song of Croatia, plus a few of the opening shouts gave the event more of a religious feel than a football game.
Would this frighten Spain?
Er, no.
Boss De La Fuente sprang only one mild surprise with his line-up, picking Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella at left back ahead of Bayer Leverkusen’s Bundesliga-winning Alex Grimaldo.
Croatia were as expected, with a midfield three boasting a combined age of 99 and 372 appearances between them.
But Modric, Marcelo Brozovic and Mateo Kovacic barely had a kick in the opening stages as Spain came out hard and fast, with early chances for Morata and Yamal.
After a scrappy spell, the breakthrough came just before the half hour.
A Croatian attack broke down and it was no time for tiki-taka ball retention. With one, straight through-ball, Ruiz took out half the Croatian team.
8Fabian Ruiz nets a brilliant second for La RojaCredit: Getty
With a superb first touch, Morata removed Marin Pongracic from the game. He rolled it past Dominik Livakovic with his second.
Morata appeared far more upbeat following a week in which he expressed his belief that Spain, if not the entire world, was against him.
Kovacic had the opportunity to equalise right away, but he took a long time to decide to shoot, so he mishandled the shot and Simon made an easy save.
Punishment arrived quickly.
Something seems to have been released in Yamal after the first goal. Ruiz was touched by Pedri after he worked the ball to him.
With a chop back, the Paris Saint-Germain player sidestepped Brozovic and hit the bottom corner, sending Modric for a copy of the Berlin Echo.
Again, Croatia had the opportunity to respond immediately.
However, Lovro Majer cut the rebound into the side net after Simon had made a stop against Brozovic.
Dani Carvajal puts Spain three upCredit: Reuters
Before Carvajal ended the game in first-half stoppage time, Josko Gvardiol also had a chance.
The full back executed a volleyed finish like a striker, timing his run to perfectly meet Yamal’s exquisite cross. For a man not known for his aims, Carvajal, what a couple of weeks.
He first strikes in Real Madrid’s Champions League victory at Wembley, then two weeks later he adds another goal in a prominent European city.
The throngs of Croatians had finally quieted down.
Not long after the half, it nearly got worse. Before the young player raced into the box and saw his cross or shot ricochet off Morata and into safety, Livakovic, however, stopped a shot that Yamal should have most likely buried.
Then arrived Croatia’s finest opportunity of the match.
But Cucurella stopped right-back Josep Stanisic’s shot. Simon knocked the ball off Andrej Kramaric’s head after Ante Budimir headed it back across goal.
Before a Simon mistake caused Rodri to foul Petkovic in the box and narrowly avoid a red card, not much else transpired of note.
Petkovic’s spotkick was deflected onto the post by the Spain custodian, and Petkovic scored from a cross by fellow substitute Ivan Perisic.
However, Perisic was in the penalty area when the first kick was made, according to VAR Stuart Attwell’s ruling.
Thus, Croatia was not even granted solace, and Spain’s victory was certain.
Rodri got away with just a yellow card for preventing a Bruno Petkovic tap-in – Credit: Rex
Michael Oliver was involved in late controversy – Credit: Rex