Arthur Numan: Raul got Spain to final by staying at home

Jun 29 2008 Arthur Numan

YOU only have to look closely at his substitutions to know Luis Aragones isn't the kind of manager scared to take a decision that might just make him unpopular.

Just a month short of his 70th birthday the Spain boss can safely call the shots knowing what he decides is based on the bedrock of a lifetime of experience.

Fernando Torres might not have liked being taken off three times in the four games he has started but Aragones doesn't care.

And it's that kind of attitude which is the reason Spain will be looking to win their first major championship since Euro 1964 when they face Germany in tonight's final.

Yet it's a bold decision Aragones (below) took before this tournament got under way rather than any made in Austria that has proved crucial - the one to leave Real Madrid super star Raul at home.

There's no doubting the striker's quality and the 31-year-old is his country's all-time top scorer with 44 goals from 102 games.

But when you have a young group of players - as Spain do at the moment - then they can be in awe of such a strong personality in the dressing-room.

Aragones clearly felt that having such a dominant player at the heart of his squad sucking up all the attention was detrimental to the development of a team unit.

It was a brave decision and he was heavily criticised for ditching a national icon who is still banging in the goals for Madrid. But so far it has worked and you can't argue with success.

Spain were one of the pre-tournament favourites but over the last 20 years that's always been the case and they have never been able to live up to the hype.

This time they have and it's quite remarkable what Aragones has achieved with the squad.

They've played well in the whole tournament as opposed to the likes of Holland who peaked too early then faded.

Of course, we've all marvelled at the skills of the likes of David Villa, Cesc Fabregas and Fernando Torres.

But forme one of the cornerstones of Spain's success has been a more rugged player - Real Madrid star Carlos Puyol.

The central defender always gives 100 per cent. His commitment for the team is unbelievable and he's so important to his side because of his attitude.

When you see him on the pitch you think 'calm down' because he's always diving in and tackling, challenging for every ball.

If you play against him you know you are in for a really hard game because he's so focused on doing well.

We all love the flair players but every team needs a Puyol for balance.

It's nice to have guys who can create something and stand out, like Wesley Sneijder for Holland, but you must have those who will do the dirty work.

They try to win the ball and when they get it give it to someone who can do something more positive with it. Puyol does that while keeping the lock on the back door as well.

While Spain totally deserve to be in Vienna I'm not so sure I can say the same about their final opponents.

I know people will expect me to say that because of the Dutch-German rivalry but it is purely from a football point of view.

The Germans play more in defence and try to come out on the counter attack and they certainly didn't deserve to get a result against Turkey in the semi-final.

Having said that, Joachim Low's side have the enviable ability to create a goal out of nothing.

For 20 minutes against Turkey they weren't in the game and then they scored out of the blue - a good goal too it has to be said.

But I have my doubts about them. They've only played one good game against Portugal although I suppose you have to say they are there and in their defence have shown they are the team who can achieve when it matters.

Turkey impressed me in that last-four match because they played well despite missing so many players through injury or suspension.

Maybe Germany underestimated Fatih Terim's men after the Turks got lucky against the Czechs and Croatia with late goals.

In the end the Germans made it with Philipp Lahm's late goal and I must say - as a full back myself - I've been impressed by him.

But overall I just find Germany so boring to watch.

They have managed to reach the final without being entertaining.

They have some players in the team who can make the difference such as Lukas Podolski, Michal Ballack and Bastian Schweinsteiger but as a team they disappoint me.

I'd rather see a side who set out to entertain and win it so that's why I hope Spain go on and lift the trophy tonight.

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I REMEMBER when my country were co-hosting Euro 2000 with Belgium everyone was dreading the England fans coming to Holland. At the time we weren't sure where they would be based and there was a huge sigh of relief when it was announced England would play their matches in Belgium.

That says enough about the reputation of their supporters and after the subsequent and well predicted trouble in Belgium that year I'm glad John Terry and Co weren't at Austria and Switzerland.

There has only been minimal bits of trouble at this year's tournament with few incidents to report on.

Maybe that's because fans of the countries who qualified were only focused on watching football and enjoying themselves.

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ALTHOUGH he only played three of Russia's five games my player of the tournament is Andrei Arshavin.

He had two great matches against Sweden and Holland and although he didn't perform against Spain in the semi-final it's clear he's a talent.

Andrei had a good season with Zenit St Petersburg, winning the UEFA Cup at Rangers' expense, but we don't get to see the Russian league on TV in the same way we do with Spanish, Italian and English matches.

It's hard to believe he's already 27 and we know so little about him.

Critics claim he didn't show enough under pressure in the semi but neither did the rest of his team.

Arshavin has said he wants to move to Barcelona and I expect them to sign him so hopefully we'll all be seeing a lot more of him from now on.