Barca was, has been and will always be a hotbed of second-to-none football, influencing not only the Spanish but football in general. So it’s no wonder it was their youth academy La Masia who launched ‘tiki-taka’ (high possession, countless passes) some 15 years ago that revolutionized the world of football. From Pep Guardiola’s Barca, it was quickly implemented into the Spanish national team, too, pushing them sky-high in three consecutive tournaments (EURO 2008, WC 2010, EURO 2012), with Spain winning them all.The pillars of this out-of-the-box style were the Blaugrana pearls Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta. Therefore, the entire ‘tiki-taka’ style of play was also known as ‘Xaviniesta’, emphasizing the importance of those two football magicians. For years, both in Barcelona and Spain shirt, they had been directing the plays, providing them with rhythm and pace and concrete plan and execution. And task – to win, to score goals.In the meantime, the duo inevitably stepped aside and retired, but the Red Fury kept playing that exact same game as if they were still there. The result? Three World Cups and 12 years after that glorious 2010 campaign, Spain – once giants – are on the score of three victories out of 11 matches. Only three! Australia, Iran and Costa Rica.Spain’s record at the World Cup since they won it in 2010. It’s not great, is it. pic.twitter.com/c2KI7KIFmJ— The Spanish Football Podcast (@tsf_podcast) December 6, 2022 They might be the champions of useless possession, but that’s about all. The defeat to Morocco on Tuesday perfectly encapsulates all the flaws and imperfections of the modern-day Spanish side, which suffocates in passing the ball just for the sake of possession and not for trying to get a goal.Bounou’s penalty heroics send Morocco into quarterfinals and Spain crashing out of World CupDespite numerous articles labelling them as the ‘Xaviniesta’ 2.0 version, the new generation of Barca’s gems – Pedri and Gavi – are still far from their predecessors. To be fair to those guys, they are still 20 and 18, respectively, and their time is still yet to come.TikiTaka. TikTok. pic.twitter.com/FsTYy1u22h— 9. (@GreatWhiteNueve) December 6, 2022 But Luis Enrique and the Spanish football authorities on the other end should be aware of the abysmal of their strategy. This is no longer 2010, and the rivals are so accustomed to it, like Morocco yesterday, that it can not be successfully used against any serious opponent.Just look at the stats – Spain had 77% of the ball possession, compared to Morocco’s only 23%, but the Africans were better in terms of shots on target! Nothing more to say.Unbelievable stats..Still Spain lost the match 😳#MARESP #FIFAWorldCup #Spain #Morocco pic.twitter.com/RNrAvzIM7s— Virendra Shekhawat (@Virendr03447820) December 7, 2022 The Spanish press is trying to get their head around the World Cup exit, and there’s a strong sentiment Luis Enrique is about to be sacked after four years in charge. And although they preserve a healthy relationship with Enrique and are not keen on doing any witchhunt on him, there’s also a fear that his stay would only cause further deterioration. Why? According to some of them, he spent years building this squad as if he’s been working in some club. It took him a lot of time and patience to develop this youngster into a group that implements the unique football philosophy, and his possible exit would mean the destruction of the entire ‘building’ and starting (again) from scratch.Spain coach Luis Enrique: “I take this opportunity to say, now that we are eliminated, let’s see if Argentina gets to where it deserves.” pic.twitter.com/mu8X9YJ6kv— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) December 7, 2022 That’s maybe the only solution for Spain because making the same famous dish without two essential ingredients has brought them nothing but despair over the years. The world has moved on since 2010, it’s time Spain do the same.QATAR 2022 WORLD CUP1/4 FINALSFriday 18.00: (9.50) Croatia (4.60) Brazil (1.42)22.00: (3.50) Netherlands (3.15) Argentina (2.35)Saturday 18.00: (6.00) Morocco (3.60) Portugal (1.70)Sat 22.00: (3.15) England (3.20) France (2.50)***odds are subject to change
