Spain vs. Netherlands: Spain is World Cup winner after 1-0 victory over the Netherlands

JOHANNESBURG -- After enduring 80 years to win the World Cup, Spain certainly wasn't going to let the Netherlands' bruising tactics, 30 minutes of overtime, a record number of yellow cards and several squandered scoring opportunities to get in the way of history.
The wait ended Sunday night when, in the 116th minute of an abrasive, unattractive match on the brink of heading to a penalty kick tiebreaker, midfielder Andres Iniesta scored against the short-handed Dutch for a 1-0 victory before 84,490 at Soccer City Stadium.

In their first appearance in the championship game after decades of maddening failure, the Spaniards tolerated Dutch aggression and several anxious moments to build upon their 2008 European title.

"We started a legacy in 2008," Coach Vicente Del Bosque said, "and we tried to preserve that legacy here."

Netherlands lost in the championship game for the third time, and in the process, stained its laudable reputation with a reprehensible performance. The Oranje received nine yellow cards -- three more than the combined record for a final, set in 1986 -- and when defender John Heitinga was assessed his second in the 109th minute, the Netherlands had to play a man short.

Dutch Coach Bert van Marwijk tried to defend his team's approach, which included Nigel de Jong's flying kick to Xabi Alonso's chest in the first half.

"It's not our style to commit horrible fouls," he said. "It's not our kind of football. Both sides committed terrible fouls."

When the match ended, amid fireworks and confetti, several Dutch players confronted English referee Howard Webb.

Spain was hardly innocent but nothing compared to the Oranje.

The match was "very tough, very rough," Iniesta said. "All sorts of things were happening on the pitch."

Iniesta, one of six Spain starters from club titan FC Barcelona, seemed to get better as the match unfolded and made the difference late in extra time.

Fernando Torres's service was blocked to the feet of teammate Cesc Fabregas, who served a diagonal ball for Iniesta. Dutch defender Rafael van der Vaart stepped forward in an effort to catch Iniesta offside but was too late. Iniesta touched the ball high and then stung a waist-level shot from seven yards off goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg's right hand and into the far corner.
"I simply made a small contribution," Iniesta said, minimizing the importance of a goal that will enter Spanish lore. For much of the evening, Spain labored to establish the mesmerizing possession and ball movement that has marked its play for more than three years. The partnership of de Jong and Mark van Bommel disrupted Spanish masterminds Xavi and Iniesta, and the tone turned harsh and cynical.

Spain wasn't enjoying as much of the ball as it had grown accustomed to in recent matches, and when it did, the Dutch were intent on inflicting pain.

Webb tried to keep control, issuing five yellow cards (three to the Netherlands) in the first 28 minutes. However, he could have sent off both van Bommel, for a brutal tackle from behind on Iniesta, and de Jong, for his martial arts move on Alonso.

The Netherlands had set the tone, and Spain had to be careful not to lose composure. The Dutch have more to offer than brawn, and with every break in concentration, the Spaniards found themselves chasing the ever-dangerous Arjen Robben.

The constant disruptions extinguished any chance of Spain reviving the dour match. Just before halftime, Robben tested goalkeeper Iker Casillas with a near-post threat from 18 yards.

After the break, the pace quickened, the game creaked open ever slightly. But then Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Heitinga joined the yellow card parade three minutes apart.

The moment the Dutch had waited for came in the 62nd minute when Robben timed his run exquisitely and collected a through ball for a clean run. The charging Casillas committed to his left, and when Robben tried to place the ball behind him, the keeper used his trailing right foot to deflect it wide.

"We didn't hold back anymore," van Marwijk said, "and that is when it turned into a good match."

In the 69th minute, Spain's David Villa should have capitalized on Heitinga's clumsy clearance in the six-yard box but the Dutch defender recovered in time to block the angled bid. Eight minutes later, Sergio Ramos's seven-yard header was terribly off target.

Robben was given another opportunity, bursting past Carles Puyol to run onto a bouncing ball. Beaten on the play, Puyol held back Robben by placing his right arm across the Dutchman's stomach. Robben broke free and nimbly kept his balance but couldn't gather possession, allowing Casillas to extinguish the threat.

If Robben had fallen, Webb might have been persuaded to issue a red card.

Both teams stirred in overtime. Stekelenburg made an outstanding save with his left shin on Fabregas's left-footed bid, set up wonderfully by Iniesta, and Dutch defender Joris Mathijsen headed high from six yards on a corner kick.

Heitinga's evening ended when he tugged on Iniesta's shoulder to thwart a run into the box. With Dutch hopes resting almost solely on a possible penalty kick tiebreaker, Iniesta provided the breakthrough and Spain killed off the game to trigger celebrations on the field, in the crowd and all over a long-suffering country. Said Spain midfielder Sergio Busquets: "We've been waiting a whole life for this."
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Justice took almost until time ran out, almost until a dreaded shootout, to arrive in this World Cup final.

For 115 minutes, the Dutch players had done what they said they were prepared to do: they played ugly. They blamed their history, feeling that the team inspired by Johan Cruyff in the 1970s lost in spite of its talent. On Sunday, seemingly afraid of the gifted Spaniards, they simply opted to knock them down.

There has never been so foul an intent in the 40 years I have watched the World Cup. Sadly, the English referee Howard Webb added to it by handing out only yellow cards to eight Dutch players.

The red stayed in his pocket until extra time when John Heitinga, who had already received a yellow card for an earlier foul, brought down Andrés Iniesta to prevent a scoring chance. In some soccer circles that is seen as a team-oriented act, deliberately accepting a second card to prevent what could have been the winning goal.

It stands up there, or down there, with Luis Suárez’s deliberate handball to prevent a go-ahead goal by Ghana in the final seconds of a game Uruguay went on to win.

Long before Heitinga was sent off, Webb had the ability to protect the Spanish players from numerous fouls by the Dutch, notably by Mark van Bommel and Nigel de Jong.

The most vicious of those fouls came 28 minutes in when de Jong booted Xabi Alonso in the rib cage, a play that in many games would have resulted in his dismissal.

Webb chose to give him a yellow card, and the mayhem went on.

Yes, the Spanish players retaliated, sometimes with kicks of their own. But when a team is in the World Cup final against an opponent that has said it is prepared to win ugly, it has no choice but to defend itself and show that it will not be intimidated.

When Spain’s goal finally came, it arrived with beauty. Iniesta had been the outstanding player on the field, and was probably the most fouled as well.

When his chance came, off a pass by the substitute Cesc Fàbregas, he did not hesitate. His volley into the opposite corner of the net was a difficult play at the best of times. In the 116th minute of the World Cup final, with his legs bruised from the kicking and his energy level sapped, it was truly exceptional.

Iniesta then took off his jersey to reveal a white undershirt. It was inscribed “Dani Jarque Siempre Con Nosotros” — Dani Jarque, always with us. Jarque was a player on Espanyol, the rival team to F.C. Barcelona in the same Catalan city. He died of a heart attack in August 2009, at age 26.

Iniesta was given an automatic yellow card for taking off his jersey.

“I wanted to carry Dani Jarque with me, and so did the other players,” Iniesta said. “And I think this was the best tribute.”

FIFA, soccer’s governing body, is uncompromising when it comes to this rule. Any player who removes his shirt when celebrating a goal, regardless of reason or sentiment, receives a yellow card.

So Iniesta, the best player in this World Cup final, received the same punishment that players like van Bommel and de Jong received for hard fouls that had the potential to injure.

The correct team won the World Cup. Spain had overcome Germany, which was beaten by its skilled passers in the semifinal. It had withstood the Netherlands’ attempts to kick its star players out of the final.

Iniesta had shown some humanity with his gesture, and taken the consequences. And he triumphed in a final game that almost shamed the tournament.

The Dutch, when they reflect on their performance, will know that they threw away a great opportunity. The two best teams in the world were on the field in Soccer City stadium, but one of them was not content to let skill decide the http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/12/sports/soccer/12hughes.htmlgame. Thankfully, it lost.