Espana: Supernatural champions

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Spain defeated Italy in the Euro 2012 Final by the score of 4-0. In doing so, the Spanish broke new ground by being the first team to win two Euros in a row and 3 major championships in a row (World Cup 2010 included). And they did so in style.

The Spanish fantasy with the tiki-taka passes, intricate moves and never-ending possession is enough to make any opposing squad scramble to gain a foothold in a match. In group play, the Italians scored first against the Spaniards and frustrated their attack patterns. By the final, however, Vicente del Bosque had figured out a new way to deal with the Italians: shut down Pirlo and Balotelli. With this, Montolivo and Cassano were isolated and the Italians lost their primary weapon: building Balotelli's game.

Aside from the mastery in placing the right pieces against the Azzuri, was the 6-man midfield, which Del Bosque corrected: It's three attackers. A 4-3-3? Why not? It's a 4-6-0 in disguise with Silva and Iniesta as co-anchors for Fabregas. And it worked. In fact, it worked during the whole tournament.

Re-writing midfield-attack strategy is just one facet of the Spanish game. For when they see that a change is needed, a number 9 like Torres can step in to deliver. Up 2-0 versus Italy late in the second half, El Nino came in to finish off the game. Juan Mata, the new rising star in this team, put the game away with a 4-0.

Spain is about fantasy, about goals, about us liking the game for what it's supposed to be: quick, direct, and fun to watch. This is arguably the best national team ever put together, at least for the last 4 decades, if we are to count Pele's Brazil in 1970. But this team is more complete from goalkeeper to forward. They know how to win and they do so in style.

The Spanish national team has broken record after record in recent times, but one in particular remains: no European team has ever won a World Cup in the American continent. That Brazil is hosting 2014 just makes things more special. If there is a group of players that can break this record, then it must be pure dream, fantasy, supernatural. And right now, Spain is riding high on being magical.

Old Trafford is blue: City vs United

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When the scoreboard in Old Trafford read 6-1 you thought "yes, United continued its dominance and tore another team apart." But wait. The scoreboard is reversed? And to Manchester City? Fans, critics and commentators were left with mouths open, some in disgust, some in joy, some in sheer wonder. This was the team that had just beaten Arsene Wenger's Arsenal by 8-2 earlier in the season. And now the result was reversed.

But how did today's game really happen? Several points come to mind. First, not all usual United stars were on hand: Valencia, Park, Vidic, Giggs, Hernandez, Berbatov. Some were inexplicably on the bench. Evans got a chance to play in the derby along with Welbeck. No results. Indeed, Evans proved the opposite by getting ejected with Man City already up on the scoreboard. Chicharito would come into the match too late for heroics. Park and Valencia never got a chance.

There was also some disbelief in United. Perhaps a bit too much cockiness for players like Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra. They weren't believing that Aguero and Balotelli could run rampant around them. Did they not care? They seemed almost amateurish, especially in Dzeko's goals. And the Bosnian was only a substitute. All in all, only the benched players and Wayne Rooney seemed to care.

There's another side to this coin. Manchester City has elevated its play in the past three years through a mixture of style and stars. Some stars didn't quite mesh (Tevez, Adebayor) and some were troublesome (Tevez, Balotelli). But the spine of the team with Lescott, Silva, Toure, Milner, carried the team to a new sphere. It doesn't hurt that the Manchester City owners have deep Middle Eastern pockets.

Today it was Silva and Milner's game. They dictated play by keeping the ball in midfield and gaining the upper hand in possession. Toure and Lescott marked United players higher up the pitch and controlled the flanks such that Anderson and Young had very few dangerous crosses. And up front, Balotelli and Aguero shined. Their shots were cruel and accurate. The passes that came to them from Milner and Silva were daggers into De Gea's area. And in doing so, they handed United their worst defeat at home in the Premier League era. Welcome, Manchester City. There's a new sheriff in town.