Spain let in one goal across the whole tournament, the fewest by any World Cup winner, and Belgium scored it in the quarter-final 1. The individual awards came out the same shape. Rodri, a holding midfielder, took the Golden Ball as best player. Unai Simon, the goalkeeper, took the Golden Glove. Pau Cubarsi, a 19-year-old centre-back, took the Young Player award and became the first defender to win it since the award began in 2006 2.
Spain's goals kept arriving late and off the bench. Mikel Merino scored in the 91st minute against Portugal from a Ferran Torres pass , then in the 88th against Belgium . Three of Spain's four knockout ties were settled after the 88th minute.
The group stage supports the opposite reading. Spain had 74% of the ball against debutants Cape Verde and drew 0-0 , then needed a 1-0 to see off Saudi Arabia. A side that cannot score until the 88th minute is not obviously choosing to score in the 88th minute, and three late winners is a thin sample to hang a theory on.
Both readings run into the same squad. Luis de la Fuente picked eight Barcelona players and nobody from Real Madrid, the first Spain squad in the country's history without one , and rotated it hard through a 104-match format. Fresh legs against tired defences in the last 20 minutes is a real advantage over a tournament this long, whatever it says about the first 70.
