THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2016 Spain needs a better spine to reign again

BARCELONA: For all Vicente del Bosque’s confidence that he has the right balance of experience and youth to return Spain to their familiar place on the winner’s rostrum, ques- tions remain about his best starting line-up ahead of Euro 2016. On the surface, Spain’s qualifying record of nine wins out of 10 going into the tournament looks impressive but they rarely delivered performances to suggest they could pick up a third successive title or banish the memories of their 2014 World Cup failure. No-one will be keener to prove the doubters wrong than Del Bosque in what looks to be his last hurrah as Spain’s coach. Once again he can call on trusted stalwarts Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos and Cesc Fabregas, all regulars before or since the 2010 World Cup triumph, this time blending them with a new generation of young players such as Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea, Atletico Madrid midfield- er Koke and Juventus striker Alvaro Morata. “I really believe in the veterans who have spent a long time with us and we trust the newcomers, who give the squad impulse and fresh blood,” said Del Bosque. “Our objective is to think beyond the two European Championships we’ve won, because people are only going to value what we do in the next one.” Another triumph will require a settled spine to his team, yet there remains uncertainty over who will start as central striker and in goal, where the manager must decide whether to demote Iker Casillas in favor of De Gea, whose consistently outstanding performances in the last three seasons contrast with the long-standing captain’s waning powers. Up front, the situation is equally fluid. After leav- ing out Diego Costa and Paco Alcacer-top scorer in qualify- ing-Del Bosque is likely to opt for Morata as first-choice striker, although he made just 16 league starts for Juventus. Athletic Bilbao striker Aritz Aduriz is in the form of his life at the age of 35 and scored more goals than any other Spaniard in the campaign but there are doubts about whether his physical, direct style fits in with Spain’s posses- BARCELONA: Barcelona’s Spanish midfielder Andres Iniesta holds his son Paolo next to his daughter Valeria as he speaks during celebrations at the Camp Nou stadium. —AFP sion game. At the back there remains an alarming lack of depth to cover for Sergio Ramos, who appears to have hit form at the right time after an inconsistent season, and Gerard Pique, who arrives on the back of another brilliant Ageing but dangerous, campaign with Barcelona. Injury to either would be a Sigurdsson the engine in major headache because the inclusion of Barcelona’s Marc Portugal still a threat Bartra, who has played relatively little first-team football this season, suggests experienced cover is not at hand. Iceland’s hope for success LISBON: They may be over dependent on Cristiano Ronaldo and struggling to replace old faithfuls, yet under Iniesta aims for more glory STOCKHOLM: Gylfi Sigurdsson’s did in qualifying. Now 26, Sigurdsson ing from distance, forcing backtrack- the wily leadership of Fernando Santos, Portugal can still Andres Iniesta, the driving force behind Spanish tri- road to soccer success has been arrived at the academy of English ing defenses to decide whether to be a threat. Semi-finalists four years ago, Portugal suffered umphs at the last two Euros and scorer of the goal that winding, with the latest twist taking club Reading as a teenager in 2005 pressure him and thus leave others a miserable first-round exit at the World Cup in 2014 and delivered their only World Cup in between, will hope to the Swansea player to France where and played for Shrewsbury Town and free, or allow him to shoot and hope followed that up by losing at home to Albania in their provide further inspiration as his country target a record he will govern Iceland’s midfield as Crewe Alexandra on loan before for the best. It is a conundrum that opening qualifier for Euro 2016. fourth European Championship triumph. they aim to make a mark at Euro moving to 1899 Hoffenheim in few sides found a solution to in Tempestuous coach Paulo Bento, who had steadfastly The virtuoso midfielder’s extra-time strike against the 2016. Sigurdsson’s six goals in quali- Germany. From there he was loaned Iceland’s qualifying group, in which refused to replace Portugal’s old guard, was sacked and Netherlands in Johannesburg in 2010 earned him universal fying proved instrumental in his side to Swansea where his performances they finished second. Sigurdsson replaced by Fernando Santos, who made an instant impact devotion in Spain, with even Real Madrid supporters giving qualifying for a major tournament caught the eye of Premier League posed particular problems for the as Portugal reeled off seven successive wins in the Euro the Barcelona man a standing ovation on his most recent for the first time, but his impact is rivals Tottenham Hotspur, whom he Dutch, scoring all three of Iceland’s qualifiers, all by single-goal margins, to steer themselves visits to the Bernabeu. With his trusted midfield companion felt beyond the scoresheet. In coach joined in July 2012 before returning goals against them in the home and safely to France. Santos has found the rebuilding process as Xavi Hernandez retired from international football, Iniesta Lars Lagerback’s team the collective to Swansea two years later. away qualifying victories. With his difficult as his predecessor and has also relied heavily on is the last architect of the ‘tiki-taka’style of fast-moving is always more important than the A powerful runner with the ball, strong engine, coolness from the more experienced players, even recalling veteran central passing football which Spain mastered to dominate the individual but without Sigurdsson it Sigurdsson is essential to Iceland’s penalty spot and power and accuracy defender Ricardo Carvalho, who will be 38 when the com- world game between 2008 and 2012. is hard to imagine Iceland beating successful style of defensive contain- from dead balls, Sigurdsson will be petition gets underway in France. He has also evolved his game in recent years, dropping teams such as Turkey, Czech ment and quick counter-attacking. one of the first names on Lagerback’s At least there has been a willingness to give the new deeper and dictating the play rather than just fuelling the Republic and Netherlands, as they He also poses a threat when shoot- team sheet in France.— Reuters generation a chance. More than 50 players have been attack. His influence on games is more subtle now, yet it is called up under Santos who has given 17 their full interna- no less important. “Iniesta has unique peripheral vision. He tional debuts and fielded 33 players in the qualifiers. His is a magical player,” said Barca coach Luis Enrique earlier boldness to experiment has paid off, unveiling highly this year. He is likely to captain the team in their opening promising players such as winger Bernardo Silva and mid- group game against Czech Republic if, as expected, Ike fielders William Carvalho and Joao Mario. Casillas drops to the bench. As Spain try to rise again after Possibly the most exciting of all is 18-year-old Renato their painful early exit from the World Cup two years ago, Sanches, who has just signed for Bayern Munich from the elegant pass master is best placed to orchestrate Benfica months after making his professional debut. another triumph and reassert their credentials among foot- Portugal’s biggest failure is their inability to convert ball’s elite. — Reuters chances into goals with former Manchester United winger Nani, who remains a regular at international level, one of the main culprits. In the end, however, everything still revolves around Ronaldo, who is often criticized for failing Hungary have a to reproduce his best form for Portugal even though he is chance to update their all-time leading scorer. Ronaldo remains Portugal’s talisman their own history Cristiano Ronaldo owes most of his fame and fortune to his exploits with Real Madrid, yet he also remains a hugely BUDAPEST: History always hangs heavy on the Hungarian influential figure when representing his country. Portugal’s national team, whose decades of under-achievement are con- results have improved enormously since Ronaldo made his trasted with the sepia glory of the 1950s when glittering tal- international debut against Kazakhstan as an 18-year-old in ents such as Ferenc Puskas and Jeno Buzanszky reshaped 2003. Their recent record at major tournaments is the envy of football’s landscape. Whatever else Bernd Storck’s team many bigger countries after they reached the Euro 2004 final, achieve-and nobody expects very much-they at least have the 2006 World Cup semi-finals and the Euro 2012 semi-finals, opportunity to bring the story up to date when they rejoin where they lost to eventual winners Spain in a shootout. football’s elite in France. KONYA, Turkey: This file photo taken on October 13, 2015 shows Iceland’s team posing for photographers Portugal have suffered when Ronaldo, who has captained “We want to play good football and to prove, that we are during the Euro 2016 Group A qualifying football match between Turkey and Iceland at the Konya Arena sta- them since he was 22, has been off-form such as at the last worthy members of the championship. Making the second dium. — AFP World Cup when he suffered a bout of tendinosis in his left round is not an expectation, rather a dream,” said Storck in an knee in the run-up to the competition. The Madeira-born for- assessment that few fans will disagree with. ward, who makes a point of breaking records, is Portugal’s all- Hungary have not appeared in a major tournament since time leading scorer with 56 goals in 125 appearances and the 1986 World Cup and their last European Championship needs three more caps to beat Luis Figo’s record.—Reuters appearance was in 1972. So just being there in 2016 ranks as a Versatile Alaba makes his major achievement for a team who finished only third in their group, eventually qualifying via a 2-1 aggregate play-off win over Norway. mark all over the pitch Troubled campaign Their campaign was troubled, with one coach sacked and VIENNA: Nigeria’s loss is Austria’s Heynckes, while Pep Guardiola has games, beating Russia at home and another leaving for club football in Germany before Storck gain as David Alaba has become one played him in several different roles, away and thrashing Sweden 4-1 to delivered unexpected qualification on an unforgettable night of Europe’s most versatile and accom- including advanced left back. He has clinch their place in style. in Budapest. The qualifiers had begun in the worst possible plished players. Alaba is still only 23 even played as an improvised centre Coach Marcel Koller, given a luke- way with a 2-1 defeat to Northern Ireland, a result that led to yet seems to have been around for back. Austria prefer him on the left of warm reception when he was appoint- Attila Pinter being replaced by Pal Dardai, who started the dif- ages, having made his debuts for the midfield, in front of the defense, ed in 2011, has received most of the ficult job of rebuilding a team short on confidence and cohe- both Bayern Munich and Austria as a where he can orchestrate the team credit for lifting Austria from 70th in sion. Dardai soon departed for Hertha Berlin, leaving Storck, 17-year-old. Born in Vienna to a with a style and authority which belie the world rankings to just outside the the former head coach of Kazakhstan, to introduce young Nigerian father, who is a disc-jockey, his youth. top 10. Koller has given the team a blood and dare his team to come good with a more attacking and a Filipino mother, the left-footed new tactical identity and has also style. Among some surprising calls was his decision to play Alaba initially contemplated playing Austria wants to prove itself proved a master at getting the most Laszlo Kleinheisler in the first game against Norway despite for the Super Eagles but says he was When UEFA decided to expand the out of his players, including tempera- the midfielder not having played for his club all season after never approached by them. Austria European Championship finals from mental forward Marko Arnautovic. refusing to sign a contract extension. were more than happy for him to 16 to 24 teams, Austria were seen as He has also brought remarkable The 22-year-old rewarded Storck’s faith with a man-of-the- play for them, however, and it is no one of the teams most likely to bene- stability, fielding an unchanged start- match performance that was followed by a move to Werder coincidence that since Alaba has fit. By no means among Europe’s ing line-up in the last six qualifiers. Bremen. Kleinheisler is tipped to catch the eye in France, not become a regular presence they have weakest teams, Austria were never The turnaround had been in the mak- least for his red hair which has led to the nickname Scholes. improved markedly. quite good enough to make the final ing even before the low-profile Swiss, The midfielder also shares former Manchester United player An outstanding passer, good tack- 16 and their only appearance in the whose last club job ended with him Paul Scholes’s eye for a goal. At the other end of the age range ler and free-kick specialist, he is finals came in 2008 when they co- being ignominiously sacked by is former Crystal Palace keeper Gabor Kiraly, who turned 40 in already the team captain, with 44 hosted the event. Such has been German club VfL Bochum, took over. April and is hoping to eclipse German Lothar Matthaeus as the appearances and 11 goals under his Austria’s improvement that they The Austrian federation had already oldest player to appear in the tournament finals. Where belt. In terms of medals, he is one of would have qualified for France had it implemented a new youth develop- Hungary may struggle is up front after managing just 11 goals Austria’s most successful-ever players, been a 16, or even eight-team, tourna- ment program and, like neighboring in 10 qualifiers but the group draw in France has been kind to having won four Bundesliga and one ment. After drawing at home to Switzerland, begun to tap into the them and, Portugal apart, they will look to games against Champions League titles. Sweden in their opening game, country’s large pool of immigrant tal- MADRID: Real Madrid’s Portuguese forward Cristiano Austria and tournament debutants Iceland as offering the For Bayern, he played as a left back Austria stormed through their quali- ent, something they had previously Ronaldo smiles as he addresses journalists during the chance to sneak a result. — Reuters under Louis van Gaal and Jupp fiers as they won all their remaining failed to do. —Reuters club’s Open Media Day at Real Madrid sport city.— AFP