Spanish look beyond Ireland

SOCCER:THE SPANISH players are talking about Rafael Nadal rather than Jonathan Walters.

They are talking about where Cesc Febregas might be deployed and what they made of Jose Mourinho’s comments that it is not possible for a team to win without a traditional number nine and they are talking about the burgeoning friendship between their fans and the Polish fans, who seemed to take a shine to the world champions during their opening game against Italy.

During a muggy lunchtime meeting with their press corps in the remote posting of Gniewino, it seemed that the Spanish pair of Jesus Navas and Sergio Busquets were more likely to take a question on their favourite Pedro Almodóvar film than on the likely threat posed by Aiden McGeady.

It’s not that they are forgetting about the Irish entirely: it’s just that they aren’t thinking about them very much. But when the conversation did turn to tomorrow night’s game in Gdansk, Busquets explained Spain’s intentions with ominous precision.

“If the Irish team plays to the rear, then we will have more possession. The key is patience, fast passing of the ball and waiting for opportunities to arise.”

The Spanish team have managed to find probably the most obscure base in all of Poland in which to sequester their feted team. Gniewino is a sleepy village about 50 miles north of Gdansk, a road lined with row after row of square apartment blocks whose windows are draped in Polska flags and not much else. The Spanish team hotel is reputedly luxurious, cordoned off from public view and there is nothing in Gniewino by way of diversion.

A local theatre has been transformed into their media centre for the duration of the tournament and outside, a few dozen Spanish fans lounged against the metal railings hoping for a glimpse of their fans while others took a siesta under the shade of the tree.

Inside, happy Spaniards gathered around a table offering chocolate biscuits and bowls of olives: suitably humble fare given the precipitous position of the national economy. As hideouts for world champions go, the Spaniards could not have picked a more low-key or modest location.

In fact, the immediate temptation among the Irish present was to line the Spanish top table with brochures advertising the summer delights of Sopot, with its restaurants, its white beaches and the long pier which is its crowning glory. At least the Irish team seemed to have beaten the champions when it came to picking a team base.

But there wasn’t much talk about the Irish. If there is any anxiety among the Spanish, it was based around the underwhelming opening performance against Italy rather than what might happen in Gdansk. As reigning European and world champions, the Spanish have their sights fixed on the big picture: the foundations of their banking system may be crumbling but they haven’t lost the art of how to play football.

“We are a team with experience,” Navas said. “A similar thing happened against Switzerland in the World Cup. We lost that game and recovered. There are lots of points in hand. And we weren’t playing any team: it was Italy. The groups are playing very evenly. Obviously the Irish players are different to the Italians. They tend to deploy to the rear. It will be a complicated match but Spain must go out there and win the three points.”

So that’s it then. They intend putting Trapattoni’s team to the sword. A series of planned questions by the Irish contingent covering everything from the Armada to Xabi Alonso’s Dunboyne connection to the economic hazards faced between both countries went unasked because of stern rejections of the Spanish lady in charge of the event, who waved her hands away as if flies had come into her vicinity.

The truth is that the Spanish are more pre-occupied with their own team formation than with their opposition. Asked about playing in midfield for his country while manning a more centrally defensive role for Barcelona, Busquets gave a polite and possibly rehearsed answer. It was the same when the issue arose of whether or not they would play a recognised centre forward.

“The important thing is the number of goal opportunities,” Navas offered. “Against Italy, there were chances and we do feel that the goals will come over the next matches. Italy is a strong team but we did create chances.”

Is all of this disrespectful to Ireland? Possibly, but any footage that the world champions studied of Ireland’s match against Croatia would have hinted at little present danger – except for possible hearing damage caused by the green clad fans.

“Our aim is to reach the final and to win it,” Busquets said, offering another broad hint that Spain are looking just a bit beyond the Irish threat.

“It won’t be easy. But the pressure is normal. We are used to having high expectations on us and the important thing is that we work hard. Also, we do feel that we have some good players.”

The beautiful understatement says it all. They kept counsel on the quality of the Irish players and any attempt at a Spanish inquisition was kept at bay. An hour in Gniewino gave one unmistakable impression. If there is to be the Miracle in Gdansk tomorrow evening, the Spanish will be the most surprised of all.