Key events
What happened to Argentina’s talismanic captain? Was that the last we will see of him on the World Cup stage? Quite possibly.
Pablo Iglesias Maurer puts it simply: The world’s greatest player will not see his legacy sullied by this defeat but his team’s display destroyed the game.
With their process and craft, Spain subdued “an Argentina team built on faith, devotional energy and a belief in the frankly irrational magic of your lone scurrying 39-year-old genius,” Barney Ronay writes.
Well, sometimes that magic will forsake you. The deus ex machina will refuse to appear. And he is perhaps gone from this stage now for good, a Prospero giving his final address to the crowd from a clanky metal bowl outside New York.
De la Fuente on the victory
Speaking after the match, Spain’s manager, who is a deeply religious person, said: “It was written, and we deserve it.”
This team and this wonderful fanbase deserve everything. We had a date with destiny and we wanted to make it count.
The players have asked me what we have left to win. Together we’ve figured out that it’s the next match in September [against England in the Nations League] because this team is tireless.
In their calm, Spain were still relentless, Sid Lowe says.
Again and again they had come, again and again they had been halted but they would not be denied. A dozen different players had taken aim at Emi Martínez’s goal but somehow he was still standing and time was slipping away, yet Spain refused to do so, so they came some more.
The post-match altercation was a sad reflection of Argentina’s foiled attempt to use their physicality against a very patient Spain. And that patience ultimately paid off, Jacob Steinberg writes, with Argentina just become more frustrated as Spain refused to take the bait.
The stats tell the story, too: Argentina’s xG was 0.00 until conceding forced a desperate late flurry. Even then, though, the threat increased only to 0.22.
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As Spain began to celebrate their second World Cup victory, Leandro Paredes decided to continue his game after the final whistle, making sure the ending was as sour as it possibly could be. The Argentina player initiated a melee just seconds after the whistle blew when he charged at Eric García and pushed him in the neck. Paredes then threw Gavi to the ground, receiving a red card for his troubles.
David Hytner
It was the triumph of an idea, an identity. Of an unshakable and patient faith. And when it was over, Spain’s new generation having emulated the one from the 2010 World Cup, all of those legendary names, there was simply delirium for them.
Preamble
Jo Khan
It’s over. 104 matches later and Spain have been crowned world champions after defeating Argentina 1-0 in extra time. In contrast to the goal-fest that was England’s third-place win over France, the final was a somewhat less exciting affair – and that’s with a closing ceremony and half-time show! (That’s another story, we’ll get to it.)
Luis de la Fuente’s side prodded and poked until the reigning champions could hold them back no longer and Ferran Torres slammed it into the net in the 106th minute. The Guardian had a veritable swarm of journalists at New York New Jersey Stadium to cover the final action on the pitch and off.
So, let’s get into it … there’s a lot of it!
