For the third straigh major international tournament, Spain have advanced to the final. This time around, though, the semifinal match that got them there wasn't exactly the stuff of soccer legend. In fact, Spain's 0-0 (4-2) win might have been the dullest game of the tournament. For much of the 120 minutes, La Furia Roja looked bland, uninterested in scoring, and were generally slow. Portugal, while they were expected to take a counterattacking approach, failed to generate any shots on goal in spite of a few decent opportunities.
The game seemed destined for penalties, and it's impossible to stop destiny. After each team's first shooters missed, Portugal's Bruno Alves stepped up to take the fourth. CLANG off the crossbar! Cesc Fabregas came through in the clutch and put his kick into the bottom left corner, sending Spain into the finals and Cristiano Ronaldo home to his hot girlfriend, millions of dollars, La Liga championship, and the reputation as soccer's second-best player.
Most of the debate immediately following the game centered on the fact that Cronaldo never took a penalty, which doomed the Portuguese. While in theory you want your best player taking a penalty FOR SURE, Bruno Alves still has to make his for Portugal to have a chance. If he shoots last and misses, he would be just as much of a goat as he is now.
And there's your SportsOlogy TWO CENTS of the day. Here's the penalty shootout, in rapid fire style.
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