Viva Espana! Viva!

I like to think that Spain will not be the third European casualty of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It was bad enough watching Italy slump to a 3-1 defeat against Slovakia last night. I’m no Italian fan but it still hurts when a team that comprises Pirlo, Cannavarro, Gattuso, Buffon, Camoranesi, Chiellini and Iaquinta flop on the grandest stage of them all. It’d be nothing short of catastrophic if Chile does that to Spain tonight.

I’m not Spanish, not even remotely and live in dumpy city (long live Bombay!) more than 6000 miles away from the Promised Land (Spain). I’ve been supporting the national team since 2007 and danced myself crazy when they won EURO 2008. They’ve been underachievers and underdogs for as long as they’ve been playing the sport. It’s only in the last couple of years that they’ve finally played to their potential. And they’ve carried that into the World Cup, threatening to sweep away all opposition with their slick passing game.

But Switzerland stood in the way. Or rather, my mother allowed Switzerland to mess up the match. Everything was going fine, Iniesta and Xavi were supplying Villa with enough ammunition every time they went forward. Of course the finishing was nothing to write home about. But then, my mother asks why the Swiss haven’t scored yet. In the next three seconds, Gelson Fernandes skipped past Puyol and Pique and scrambled the ball into the net.

I’m never going to forgive her for her ill-timed remark. She cost Spain the match, but refuses to admit it. Thank god Spain played Honduras while she was sleeping. But I think I’ve identified another potential threat: - popcorn. Teams I support tend to lose while the corn’s popping. So there won’t be any food on the table for tonight’s match, not even orange juice or a 5-Star crunchy. I’m going to sit in my favourite chair, refuse to answer any calls and hope all goes good. Viva Espana! Viva!