David Villa's number was up. Over on the touchline, the board showed a seven. Villa glanced across at it, surprised and saddened, then walked slowly toward the edge of the pitch with his head down, embraced Juan Mata, sat on the bench and began to cry. So, this is the end.
Bench-bound and with nothing much to do during Spain's third and final fixture at the 2014 World Cup, yesterday's 3-0 dead rubber victory over Australia, a bored Diego Costa decided to while away a couple of minutes by attempting to wax Xabi Alonso's leg using nothing but a strip of sock tape.
Al...
Pepe Reina says he hopes Vicente del Bosque stays on as Spain manager, and that the lessons learned from failure at the 2014 World Cup could make the team even better in the future.
- Alvarez: Five things Del Bosque got wrong
- Three Points: Old Guard rally for Spain win
Defending champions Spain ha...
Spain put up one of the worst World Cup title defences in history, and the analysis has been unpleasant reading for fans who have been used to glory in the three previous tournaments. Hindsight is a beautiful thing, so here are five decisions by coach Vicente del Bosque that resulted in Spain's dism...
Posted by ESPN Stats & Information
With its 4-1 defeat of Cameroon in the capital city of Brasilia, Brazil won its group for the ninth straight World Cup. Mexico finishes as the Group A runner-up with its 3-1 victory over Croatia in Recife, advancing to the round of 16 for the sixth straight World Cup, the third-longest active streak...
