It was the kind of Ferrandipity Spain perhaps needed in the end to reclaim their world. When the denouement arrived, the camera slowly turned observational, staying close to a few central characters and showing how they tried to fit into the sense of eventuality. Against the sunny backdrop of a giant New Jersey stadium, a parable of disparate parts took shape, blurring the line of connections between present and past.Nico Williams headed Pedro Porro’s cross back into the middle of the box and Ferran Torres drove home Spain’s march to the summit with a rasping left-footer in the 106th minute, 16 years after Andres Iniesta’s coup de grace with another extra-time winner announced their arrival on the world’s stage. As Ferran, with adrenaline pumping, uprooted the corner flag with a giant kick and was mobbed by teammates in wild celebration, Iniesta seated with his 2010 teammates, came in the frame, clapping and smiling.Playing in counterpoint to this montage of images stood Lionel Messi — his eyes downcast and shoulders hunched, almost dreamily detached, perhaps resigning to the impending inevitability.Spain’s rebirth in the game’s grandest stage coincided with an awful self-destruction of Argentina. No shots were on target in the regulation time; there was no heart in the play-forMessi joie de vivre and a peculiar disregard for making their battle more meaningful, hit an impenetrable barrier.
Argentina’s sky was too clouded for their cosmic radiance — El Aleph — to shine and turn inspirational on a dime, and thus, the deus ex machina never came in any form of those stolen moments of ingenuity late in the semifinal against England.Enzo Fernandez’s red card deep into the regulation time came with a maddening jolt when hope was replaced with dread and from which point it became clear where the contest was heading. The winners’ curse predictably struck Argentina again as the end to their title defence came with a more brutal image — Leandro Paredes inviting another red card after being involved in an ugly clash with Eric Garcia and Gavi following the full-time whistle.
This is why Spain’s triumph looked so redemptive, almost dripping with poetic justice. It was less of a typical La Furia Roja but more of a symphony in different dazzling hues. Fearlessly methodical, enchantingly expressive and always a deep sense of colectivismo being at the centre of everything.Luis de la Fuente has turned their erstwhile passing lullaby into a more direct and dynamic force, bypassing the crowded midfields through vertical expansion. When syncs between the players were tested and strengthened by great adversity, it carried a lyricism of someone arriving at the point of self-discovery. It felt fluid and free within its thematic bounds so much so that one might be tempted to take Messi’s Argentina as an antagonist in the narrative.
In a seemingly stream-ofconsciousness course of their post-match celebration on Sunday, another enduring image stayed. Messi stood up to receive a warm embrace from the 19-year-old Lamine Yamal as the coronation of the champions was beginning. It was a picture unshakably beautiful and moving in its connotation; it was about passing the baton.
