Adios to the Tiki-Taka Men

All great teams eventually meet their nemesis. The all-conquering 1961-62 Yankees, which included Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, and Yogi Berra, turned into the 1965-67 Yankees, which failed to win eighty games for three seasons in a row. The Chicago Bulls of Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen metamorphosed into the Chicago Bulls of Ron Artest and Eddy Curry. Rarely, though, have we witnessed a sporting sunset as sudden and dramatic as the one that has come down on Spain’s soccer team at this year’s World Cup.

After losing to Holland last week by the shocking margin of five goals to one—the worst defeat in history for a reigning World Cup champion—Spain lost again on Wednesday, and was eliminated from the tournament. Chile, who is nobody’s favorite to win the Cup, beat the Spanish handily, going up two goals in the first half and never looking threatened. As the minutes ticked by and the Spanish team members looked increasingly dejected, Steve McManaman, the loquacious Liverpudlian who serves as ESPN’s color man, said, “They deserve to be out.” For once, nobody could argue with Macca’s analysis. After taking a one-goal lead over Holland in last Friday’s match, Spain allowed seven goals, scored none, and committed the sorts of errors, all over the pitch, that would have embarrassed a much lesser team.

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