Will it be a painful night for Spain?

On the big stage: He will show his strength tonight

It was like a flesh in the pan. 22 day of Euro 2012 football went like a blur. While it would not have exploded into life as some of the classic tournaments the icing on the cake may well be tomorrow when Spain entertain Italy in the final.

 Though this is the second time they meet after the group stage it promises to be something of an exciting spectacle given the late burst into form of few individuals and one in particular.

He is unpredictable, yes, but when Mario Balotelli is in fine fettle you never know. Exactly what the German wished they should had known and dealt with. His brace against them speaks volumes of his versatility upfront and his panache to treat us to the occasion with spectacular goals.

                                                                                            

Spain would be wary of him too. They are in a spot of bother of their own, not having a centre-forward, one of their biggest worry. While Torres is struggling with his wretch form their main marksman is recovering from a broken foot. To top that their brand of 'tiki-taka' style of possession football is becoming a bore to the eye – unexciting, unappealing – not exactly racing your pulse.

                                                                                                    

They may be the best team in term of their clockwork precision in passing and ball control, but that is not to say they have elevated the beautiful game to different celestial. It hasn’t captured our imagination, there are no spectacular goals that you are trained to see in Spanish league. The team may compose of Barcelona and real Madrid players, but they are lacking a Messi-Ronaldo kind of player who could produce that magic. Even then, who knows, Spain’s tryst with destiny to write a brand-new record may culminate in the electrifying final we all have been looking for.  

Coming to this tournament on the back of match-fixing scandal which has hit them like an unrelenting stench, Italy needs to dispel few doubts about their staunch support for clean football and their place in Europe football. Mario is in the mood to do exactly that and Italy is behind him to thrash once-for-all his bad boy image.

For many Maldivians who have thoroughly enjoyed this tournament we are grateful to TVM for taking initiative to telecast this live event with a dazzling smorgasbord of local football expert opinions and views. Perhaps we may not be able to bear any kind of football lower in standard for quite some time but then in ten days’ time, on 10^th July, Dhivehi league resumes, which was on hold for transfer window.

It never stops, football is always played somewhere. So do we have time for this local league?