Decline of Spain

The decline of the Spanish empire has been one of the most shocking events of this legendary World Cup. 2 years ago, after their Euros win against Italy, they were speculated to be the best international team in the history of the beautiful game. Even a year ago, they got to the Confederations Cup final, where they got easily beaten by Brazil 3-0. That may have been a sign for the whole planet, but no one took it seriously. The Barcelona players of Spain had an average season based on their very high standard. This may have been a big blow on their confidence and team spirit. The Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid players of the Spanish team ended their season late because of the Champions League Final. The final was May 24, which was just 13 days from the start of the World Cup. I don't think the team had enough time to get together and recover from the long season that preceded it. Along with those issues, they had some problems with the team selection. I don't know why Del Bosque would pick an unfit Diego Costa and a Diego Costa that doesn't know the team much when the have Alvaro Negredo and Fernando Llorente in reserve. That got badly exposed in the World Cup, as Diego Costa has had a horrendous tournament. Torres should not have been picked as well. Costa and Torres should have been replaced by Negredo and Llorente. In addition to all these mistakes, the performance was terrible. Conceding 7 goals in 2 matches, and only scoring one tells the whole story. There were so many misplaced passes throughout the 2 matches. You would have not seen this in 2010, or in 2012 for that matter. Casillas contributed a lot to the defeats, making 3 or 4 mistakes that led to 3 or 4 goals. Of course, you can't put the blame on 1 player. Pique, Ramos, Xavi, Iniesta, and other big names had below average tournaments. Spain's era was mesmerizing while it lasted, but I can now honestly say that it is over.