On Tuesday, Spain Under-21 take on Italy in the final of the 2013 European Championship and will be looking to seal a second consecutive title.
The young Spaniards won the same title back in 2011 in Denmark and are looking to replicate the achievements of the senior side that won back-to-back European titles. Indeed, it would be quite a feat should they manage to do exactly this.
However, the Spanish starlets need to overcome a strong Italian side in order to do that.
Spain Under-21’s journey to the final in Jerusalem has been a rampant one to say the least. Just like the Italians, La Rojita are also unbeaten in the tournament. Moreover, they have conceded just one goal in the eight games they have featured in.
The likes of Rodrigo, Isco, Alvaro Morata and Thiago Alcantara have been the driving force behind Spain’s blistering performances. The current Under-21 squad is one of the most strongest in the world of this age group and one can only shudder to think how good these starlets could become when they get ready to wear the colours of the senior side.
Indeed, it is not really easy to replace a squad of players who have won one World Cup and two European Championships in the last five years. But it appears that Julen Lopetegui’s young charges are not feeling the heat at all and are seemingly giving the impression of an ambitious group of talented players who want to keep the Spanish era of dominance going.
For almost five years, the Spaniards have been untouchable be it at international level or at club level. Hardly any national team has been as dominant as the Spaniards in recent years. However, everything has to come to an end and that the time will come when Spain could be forced to relinquish their status as the true footballing giant of the modern era to another nation.
It appears though, that the world of football will have to wait for the shift in power if Spain continues to produce such talented players year after year.
Boasting the likes of Isco, Thiago Alcantara, Sarabia, Morata, Iker Muniain, Sergio Canales and David De Gea, one gets a strong feeling that the Spaniards are not really looking to relinquish their hegemony anytime soon.
This summer, Israel has witnessed some really breath-taking football from young stars who could have bright futures ahead of them. But it appears that the starlets of Spain could be the ones who shine the brightest in the next three to four years.
20-year-old Alvaro Morata of Real Madrid is the tournament’s top scorer with four goals in four games and has shown that he can definitely make a name for himself in future. Iker Muniain’s performances for Bilbao regardless of last season’s troubles at San Mames have shown that the playmaker will be a big star in the future.
Thiago Alcantara has started showing his true potential both for club and country. However, it is Isco, the young Malaga attacking midfielder who has caught everyone’s eye in the tournament.
If his performances for the Andalucian club in the Champions League last season were anything to go by, the maturity he has shown in Israel bodes well not just for his career, but also for the national side.
However it is important to realise that the current Spanish Under-21 side is not really the carbon copy of the senior side that has often been blamed for over-passing.
This young group of individuals has played an expansive brand of football and has shown that should they get to replace the current senior side, Spain might enter the field with an altogether different philosophy which is definitely the one that has the potential to worry the best of the best out there.
However, the Spanish starlets need to overcome a strong Italian side in order to do that.
Spain Under-21’s journey to the final in Jerusalem has been a rampant one to say the least. Just like the Italians, La Rojita are also unbeaten in the tournament. Moreover, they have conceded just one goal in the eight games they have featured in.
The likes of Rodrigo, Isco, Alvaro Morata and Thiago Alcantara have been the driving force behind Spain’s blistering performances. The current Under-21 squad is one of the most strongest in the world of this age group and one can only shudder to think how good these starlets could become when they get ready to wear the colours of the senior side.
Indeed, it is not really easy to replace a squad of players who have won one World Cup and two European Championships in the last five years. But it appears that Julen Lopetegui’s young charges are not feeling the heat at all and are seemingly giving the impression of an ambitious group of talented players who want to keep the Spanish era of dominance going.
For almost five years, the Spaniards have been untouchable be it at international level or at club level. Hardly any national team has been as dominant as the Spaniards in recent years. However, everything has to come to an end and that the time will come when Spain could be forced to relinquish their status as the true footballing giant of the modern era to another nation.
It appears though, that the world of football will have to wait for the shift in power if Spain continues to produce such talented players year after year.
Boasting the likes of Isco, Thiago Alcantara, Sarabia, Morata, Iker Muniain, Sergio Canales and David De Gea, one gets a strong feeling that the Spaniards are not really looking to relinquish their hegemony anytime soon.
This summer, Israel has witnessed some really breath-taking football from young stars who could have bright futures ahead of them. But it appears that the starlets of Spain could be the ones who shine the brightest in the next three to four years.
20-year-old Alvaro Morata of Real Madrid is the tournament’s top scorer with four goals in four games and has shown that he can definitely make a name for himself in future. Iker Muniain’s performances for Bilbao regardless of last season’s troubles at San Mames have shown that the playmaker will be a big star in the future.
Thiago Alcantara has started showing his true potential both for club and country. However, it is Isco, the young Malaga attacking midfielder who has caught everyone’s eye in the tournament.
If his performances for the Andalucian club in the Champions League last season were anything to go by, the maturity he has shown in Israel bodes well not just for his career, but also for the national side.
However it is important to realise that the current Spanish Under-21 side is not really the carbon copy of the senior side that has often been blamed for over-passing.
This young group of individuals has played an expansive brand of football and has shown that should they get to replace the current senior side, Spain might enter the field with an altogether different philosophy which is definitely the one that has the potential to worry the best of the best out there.
