Keys to the case
The leap that stopped time in the 119th minute by Mikel Merino. His perfect header, like a dart, went straight to the heart of an entire country excited about its European Championship. The guidance of a player who craved a pass like Dani Olmo, a decisive goal and an assist. A new solo concert by a 16-year-old boy named Lamine Jamal. The defensive play of Aymeric Laporte. They were the key to Spain’s victory last Friday at Euro 2024.
Power “head”
Although La Roja’s moments of superiority over Germany were due to their good handling of the ball, they ultimately succeeded thanks to a new kind of header, just as Niklas Füllkrug increased Germany’s power and brought De la Fuente’s team to the brink of collapse.
On July 5, Merinos will add a headline to the legend of the team that has won the most European Cups with Germany at the Stuttgart Arena. On June 20, 1984, Antonio Maceda scored the first goal for Mannschaft at the Parc des Princes. The draw sent Spain out of the tournament, and Juan Señor’s cross went straight to the central defender, saving the team and securing a place in the semi-finals.
It was the round in which, on July 7, 2010, Carles Puyol spoke to Xavi Hernandez about where he should look for his shots from set pieces. In the 73rd minute, the defender flew powerfully, knocking down any opponent who got in front of him and finishing the ball into the net with all his heart.
With the same force that Mikel Merino rose in front of Olmo’s soft and measured centre, spreading his legs to find his balance in the air, he headed the ball accurately past Manuel Neuer’s team-mate to give Spain the winner.
Step forward
De la Fuente’s bet on Pedri lasted until Toni Kroos injured him. It was the opportunity Olmo had been waiting for.
As a midfielder, he knew how to read the space to appear at the right moment and made the first strike to beat La Roja. His musical center will remain in the annals of events that will always remember Mikel Merino.
Dynamism
In the dizziness he causes every time he receives the ball and starts running without thinking, Yamal played a decisive role, making his second assist at the European Championship, before he was even 17 years old. He already generated some badly finished action of Alvaro Morata, when he broke the game in a play in which in every game he puts the perfect pause in the fast world in which he lives. He stepped on the ball, got going and surprised, filtering the pass at the right moment when Dani Olmo arrived. A stellar and decisive action.
Hardness
With a superb defensive performance, Aymeric Laporte dispelled any doubts that surrounded his call to play in a “lower” league like Saudi Arabia or his physical condition. He arrived when Spain was suffering from the German onslaught, from the continuous centres from the flanks, headed everything he could and saved to become the player of the team who made the most clearances, being low in the first match and playing part of the third.
Nacho grew up alongside Laporte, Cucurella fought hard, suffering from being overlooked but winning countless balls with his speed, and Dani Carvajal was another pillar, making Musiala’s day bitter and one of his greatest dangers.