Sunday, June 24, 2012

'France did not have a proper goalscoring opportunity' - Del Bosque says Spain deserved win

The coach and his midfielder Xavi were happy with the team's display after restricting Les Bleus' chances in front of goal, and said the reigning champions were always in control
By Igor Mladenovic
Vicente Delbusque
Vicente del Bosque has expressed his satisfaction with Spain's display after his side ousted France from Euro 2012 with a 2-0 win in the quarter-final on Saturday evening.
Speaking after a game which saw Les Bleus restricted to a single shot on target, the Spanish coach echoed his players' sentiments that the title holders deservedly went through to the semi-finals following another outing where they had limited chances at goal despite dominating the encounter.

"I do not think the result is undeserved because France did not have a proper goalscoring opportunity. We were in control most of the time," Del Bosque said.

Xabi Alonso opened the scoring with a free header after just 19 minutes, before sealing the victory with a penalty in injury time after Anthony Reveillere had fouled Pedro.

Defender Gerard Pique conceded his team-mates were relieved after Alonso's early goal after it became apparent that Laurent Blanc had set out his team to sit back.

"We expected France to play defensively. The first goal made our task easier, we really felt more at ease afterwards."

Xavi also provided a similar take on the match, highlighting how Spain deprived the French side of any clear-cut chances.

"We really controlled the game well. France had almost no goal-scoring opportunity, which is a sign of our good organisation and solidarity."

Spain will now meet Portugal in the semi-finals, to be played on Wednesday at 20:45CET.
 

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