By Amanda Barrie
Canada 2007 wrapped up on the West Coast as Spain took it to Brazil winning 4-2 in extra time. Losing 2-0, the Spaniards came back to tie it up in the 84th minute, forcing overtime.
It was a sold out Swangard stadium last night. This stadium was thumping with excitement. Who would have thought Canada wasn’t a Soccer Country?
Both sides — Spain, the European Champion; Brazil, the South American Youth Champion — played spectacular soccer from the starting whistle. Possession was equal the entire game.
Brazil put two stunning goals away late in the first half. Leandro Lima and Alexandre Pato scored for Brazil.
Two minutes after Pato’s goal Spain came back. Gerard Pique made it 2-1. It kept Spain alive before the midpoint of the game. But it was a controversial goal.
“It was clear that it went off the players hand and that it wasn’t caught. That was the goal and it changed the game,” Brazilian star Pato commented after the match.
In the 84th minute, a free kick caught Brazil off guard as Spain’s Marcos Garcia notched the equalizer. The 2-2 draw went to overtime.
The added 30 minutes of this calibre soccer was a rare treat. Spain scored in the 102nd minute of play, when Diego Capel sent in a cross for Alberto Bueno to head it home. Spain finished their outstanding performance as Adrian Lopez secured the win, scoring moments before the final whistle.
This isn’t the first time the Spaniards made this kind of a comeback. In their first game of the tournament, against Uruguay, they did the same. They were down 2-0 and managed to fight their way to a draw.
“It is very good for our confidence to comeback from 2-0. We were very lucky to get a goal before the half, because it is very hard to come back from 2-0. We need to fix our mistakes before our next game and if we play like we did tonight, I am confident we will do very well,” midfielder Sunny Stephen explained.
Brazil heads home from the battle in Burnaby knowing they didn’t finish how they had hoped. Or, how they were expected to finish. Needless to say, their performance was outstanding last night.
“To beat Brazil is very special for us. They are one of the top teams, if not the top team in the world right now, and to beat them feels very good for us,” Pique said.
Spain has three days to recuperate, mentally and physically, before they face the Czech Republic in Edmonton on Wednesday.
Pique, who had to step off the pitch with an injury to his leg, said “my leg is ok, but even if I have a broken leg, I am playing in that game.”
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