To football romantics, the name Vicente del Bosque is like a fairytale magician; close your eyes and the golden day of 16 years ago floats up, when Spain first touched the World Cup’s boundless sky under his guidance. More than a decade on, Spain again stand at the threshold of a great celebration. But this time the team on the other side is no ordinary rival — it is the reigning world champion Argentina, with football’s enchanting magic now at their feet. When evening falls at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, a new epic will be written on the green grass. Before the clash, that great figure of days past, Del Bosque, reminded Spain’s young blood of two “dangerous” traits within the sky-and-white — the spell of their unpredictable play and the depth of their experience.
In the Spanish daily El País, Del Bosque wove together his admiration and his fear: “I think Spain will win the final. But Spain must certainly be wary of Argentina’s unpredictable style of play and their experience. We have all played with Argentine teammates at some point, so we know how tough a rival they are and how fighting their mentality is.” Indeed, on the semi-final night, when Argentina fell a goal behind to England, who imagined such a comeback awaited? That indomitable will to come back from the edge is exactly what Del Bosque fears.
Setting aside emotion, he said frankly: “One of football’s greatest beauties is its uncertainty; none of us knows what will happen this Sunday. Argentina are a very tough opponent — forgive me for saying it, but they really are a very cunning side. They know very well how to play and what to do. You can see it in their brilliant comeback against England in the semi-final.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report