Spain does not want to say goodbye to its World Cup. He wants to continue enjoying a great event at home that has not been seen for just 30 years, when the redsticks hung the Olympic gold in Barcelona '92. Matching the milestone is right now a dream that they do not want to give up. There is still a long way to go and suffering if you want to be eligible for medals, as was seen last night at the Terrassa Olympics.
Adrian Lock's pupils suffered tremendously to get rid of India and reach the quarterfinals in a very close game, with many comings and goings, which could only be unblocked when extra time seemed inevitable (1-0).
Marta Segú was the author of the only goal of the match with only four minutes remaining. The Barcelonan made the most of a defensive rebound after a sensational play by Clara Ycart down the right wing. The young woman from Egar got rid of the Indian defense and with her action the fans could finally sing a goal.
The campaign to promote the full at the Olympic both by the selection and the institutions did not have the desired effect. There were empty seats, although the stadium presented a good appearance and a festive atmosphere reigned, without being much less a differential factor for the interests of the Spanish. Only at the end did the public wake up, and it did so at the right time to push the team when it needed it most.
India did not make it easy at all. His classification could lead to deception. Third in their group, with two points, behind surprising New Zealand and England, they are a solid team at the back that have grown in recent years, as evidenced by the semi-finals at the Tokyo Games. Also in the last precedents of this year in India between both teams equality prevailed, with a Spanish victory (3-4) and a defeat (2-1), always by the minimum.
The "good first phase", as defined by the Spanish coach, seemed to force his pupils to take the initiative, but the initial dominance was for the Asians. The redsticks had a hard time coming out from behind, with too many turnovers. Despite this, they did not suffer excessively in their area. Curiously enough, Spain did not wake up until a poorly executed corner penalty from India. The counterattack ended in a forced shot by Beatriz Pérez and served to wake up the team, happier in attack from then on.
Savita, the Indian goalkeeper, prevented Spain from scoring in a triple action that began with a penalty corner. The hosts were saved from two against thanks to Melanie García and the defense. The occasions followed one another in the two areas. Only in the third quarter did both teams sign a truce to regain strength.
In the fourth Spain came out for all. He didn't sign an extension at all. Lucía Jiménez warned twice until Segú finally decided the balance. Australia will be the next hurdle.
