Four Years Later, Home-Base Rules Again...Ehh Sorta

Four years ago, we witnessed an Italian national side grind it's way through 7 matches and eventually claim it's 4th World Cup title. What was interesting about this special squad above everything else was that all 23 of their players were based at Italian clubs, a feat that no other national super power could emulate. The only other side who posted a squad comprised of domestic based players was Saudi Arabia. This interesting fact was touched upon by a few pundits and commentators as perhaps having a definite impact upon Italian success. Although the 23 did not all play at the same club, playing at home seemed to offer a better sense of understanding between the players and possibly better comradery.

Flash forward to this past Sunday, we witnessed a very talented Spanish side finish off an incredible and enduring journey to claim their country's first FIFA World Cup title. Although, they didn't move through the tournament in the lavishing style at which they did at the 2008 European Championship, they managed to secure a series of 1-0 victories against Portugal, Paraguay, Germany and finally the Netherlands. The composure they showed primarily in the matches against Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands solidified their place at the top of the world.

Before digging deeper into this Spanish side, let's take a look at their semi-final opponents Germany, who after a string of victories over heavy favorites England and Argentina by a combined scoreline of 8-1, were quickly moved into a favorite position. The Germans are quite a peculiar side, aren't they? It seems that in recent tournaments their have been several sides favoured above them and yet they continually pull above the rest. They haven't really possessed a international superstar of late with Chelsea's Michael Ballack being the closest thing to that and even he hasn't caught many headlines over the past 2 years. Don't get me wrong, the Germans definitely possess many high quality and world class personnel which is the very reason why they've made it to 2 finals and 2 semi-finals in this past decade.


However, when we look at some of their World Cup stars like Podolski, Schweinsteiger and Klose, they have carried the stigma of not being headliners during club season. Miroslav Klose tallied 4 goals in South Africa placing him 2nd all-time on FIFA's World Cup scoring list and yet was relatively quiet for Bayern Munich this past season. As a matter of fact, I recall having a conversation with someone before the tournament kicked off about possible favorites and with Germany I brought up the fact that despite poor seasons from players like Podolski or quiet ones like Klose, these players tend to show up and produce at the international level. Podolski is an anomaly of his own, he went from being the Best Young Player at the 2006 FIFA World Cup to several disappointing seasons with Bayern Munich and recently with FC Koln. However, he managed to instill himself throughout Germany's Euro 2008 run and also played an important role at this year's World Cup. However, this person was adamant that Germany would fail because in their opinion there was nothing to help likes Podolski or Klose to have a good World Cup. It would seem as if my hindsight prevailed this time around.

I also forgot to mention that Germany was one of 3 sides at this World Cup to feature a completely home-based side. The other 2 sides were Italy (again) and England. However, although England did feature a completely English-based side, they did have a foreign coach in Fabio Capello. Needless to say, having a completely domestic based side didn't quite help Italy this time around and surely didn't help England in their latest attempt to conquer the world. So how does Spain factor into this? Well although their side wasn't completely comprised of Spanish based players, only 3 players were not from a Spanish club. One of which was a Pepe Reina who didn't play a single minute, Fernando Torres who has played in Spain his entire career and is currently going into his 4th season with Liverpool and Cesc Fabregas who is a product of Barcelona's youth system and currently an Arsenal player. All these players are talented, but didn't factor in as much to the squad as originally expected. Fernando Torres, who has since been diagnosed with an injury, was out of form and eventually dropped from the starting XI. Cesc Fabregas was primarily used as a second half substitute and contributed well especially in the final against the Dutch.

However, the essence of this side came from Barcelona, who have arguably been the best European football club over the past several years. They recently lost their bid of winning a second consecutive UEFA Champions League title and have featured in the latter stages of the tournament frequently during the past several years. The team dominated the Spanish top flight this season amassing a total 99 points which is a La Liga record. It took an Inter side managed by one of football's greatest manager's in Jose Mourinho to put a dent in Barcelona's incredible season. Why am I stressing Barcelona so much? Just to put it in retrospect, there were 7 Barcelona players in Spain's starting XI against the Netherlands. As a matter of fact, all of Spain's Barcelona contingent were present on the pitch for the final except for back-up goal keeper Valdes.

Barcelona's core was highly influential in Spain's World Cup run.

Furthermore, if we take a look at the Spanish 23, the list is comprised of players from only several clubs; primarily being Barcelona and Real Madrid. These two teams provided the back-bone for a Spanish World Cup title. With perhaps the only exception being a side like North Korea, they were the only side to have such a dynamic present and I would argue that it had a definite impact on their success. Germany may have had similar characteristics but this time around lacked the experience and, with all due respect, talent against Spain. There are only a few sides in the world that can match Spain on talent man-for-man and Germany at this stage isn't one of them. Perhaps in another 2 or 4 years the German contingent will be able to raise their level to compliment all the good things they showed this Summer.

So the keys to Spain's World Cup triumph?

Home-Based squad, Experienced Manager, Technically-Talented Individuals, Experience and Luck. Every team needs a little luck to win it despite having all the ingredients to win it all.

I would appreciate any comments and critique at the bottom. I would definitely welcome any constructive criticism as we're all students of the game and wish to only learn more.