At Euro final, form followed function
Adam Driver playing the role of car manufacturer Enzo Ferrari tells his son, 'In all life, when a thing works better, usually it is more beautiful to the eye.' On Sunday night, it wasn't an iconic Italian sports car we saw confirming Ferrari's wisdom of form following function, but the Spanish national team in the Euro football final against England. The 2-1 victory does justice to how the two sides shared momentum.
By playing not up to the level we've seen this Spanish team play in earlier games of the tournament — and England's defence rock solid, till it was not — Spain looked less conquistador, more frustrated toreador. Boy wonder Lamine Yamal was tightly marked, and it looked like stretching the game to extra time would once again be England manager Gareth Southgate's Protestant work ethic strategy to victory.
But the second half saw Spain's motor purr like a 4.7-l V12 engine Ferrari F50. Marc Cucurella put on a masterclass display as left wing-back, while Nico Williams was magical — finding himself on both left and right flanks of the England half seemingly at the same time.
Yes, the Spanish flair wasn't turned on full knob.
