High lines, wing battles and diagonal balls... five ways England CAN beat Spain
So England are going to get mullered at Wembley on Saturday, yes? A disjointed team who laboured through the later stages of qualifying and are additionally depleted by injury against the World and European champions, a team largely comprised of arguably the best club side ever.
Spain are justifiably heavy favourites with the bookies but it might not work out that way. Vincente Del Bosque's team are notoriously sluggish when it comes to friendlies and even lost their No.1 ranking in August to Holland because of it. There are questions too over the fluidity of the Spanish attack, with the battle to get Fernando Torres firing again seemingly obsessing Del Bosque as much as it does Andre Villas-Boas.
But Spain are still the best side in the world, and matching up with the even in a meaningless game arguably provides England's toughest test since the World Cup disaster against Germany. Nevertheless, there are steps England can take to give themselves the best possible chance of pulling off a famous victory...
Defend high and tight
While every England fan will be secretly hoping for a repeat of the Holland game during Euro 96 - top opposition beaten at their own game - the positive results against Italy in 1997 and Argentina in 2002 are more relevant here. Fabio Capello's focus must be on setting out a side to contain, not attack.
This means sacrificing two midfield players - the positionally disciplined Gareth Barry and Scott Parker or the promising Phil Jones - to sit in front of the back four and aim to disrupt Spain's brutally lovely movement between the lines.
The thought might give Ashley Cole kittens after his recent slump in form, but if Phil Jagielka is fit to play - which means the increasingly slow John Terry doesn't need to - then it is vital England also play with a high defensive line, squeezing the space in which Spain do most damage. The back four must be narrow too, further condensing the area.
Don't worry about looking pretty
When England do have the ball, Wembley will naturally want to see them keep it for as long as possible. The tendency to play long, speculative passes upfield has been one of the most depressing facets of the national team in the lat few years. But that doesn't necessarily mean it's the right tactic for this match.
Diagonal balls over the top between Spain's centre halves could expose the ageing Carles Puyol's lack of pace and creaking bones. Injuries have slowed his colleague Gerard Pique too and the likely replacement for either, Raul Albiol, has been out of form, and the first team at Real Madrid, for some time.
Win the wing battles
If England can hold their own in the centre - and it's a big if - then the game will be won on the wings.
When Spain have the ball out wide, it is crucial for England to double up on their creative players in the manner displayed so effectively by Manchester City in the 0161 6-1 (where Micah Richards, again absent from Capello's squad for no sane reason, was Sky's man of the match), winning tackles or pressing Spain into hopeful long passes and crosses. It means a huge defensive effort from whoever Capello deploys out wide.
The good news? When England get the ball on the right, there will be opportunities for Theo Walcott or Adam Johnson against the speedy but small and relatively untested Jordi Alba, often to be found operating as a left midfielder for Valencia and always eager to get forward or the national team.
Roll the dice upfront
Given that Capello will already be fielding an experimental, inexperienced squad it seems negligent to leave out Wayne Rooney from a game in which he could have been so crucial, dropping into midfield as he has done so effectively recently as Manchester United have built a string of shoutouts. There are other three friendlies before the tournament in which Capello could find ways to cope with his group stage absence at Euro 2012, and England would be very unlucky to face the Spanish in those three opening games. Therefore he should have played here in preparation for a possible knockout stage clash against the holders.
But Fabio is Fabio, so Rooney stays home and younger strikers get a chance to fail against the best team in the world in front of a capacity stadium. The best Capello can make of it now is to opt for pace to threaten the centre of Spain's defence - either Daniel Sturridge as a lone striker with, say, James Milner also drafted into midfield to shore things up or Sturridge with Theo Walcott behind him. Caopello already knows what Darren Bent can do.
Press even at goal kicks
Whether it's Iker Casillas, Victor Valdes or Pepe Reina between the sticks - and even that lineup is daunting enough - they mustn't be allowed to roll the ball out to Spanish defenders unchallenged, allowing another period of defence-sapping possession to begin.
If England's strikers and wingers close the space down, the Spanish keeper will be forced to kick long to small strikers, allowing plenty of turnover chances. This sounds like a small battle, but it is vital if England are to prevail against the odds.
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