THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
POTCHEFSTROOM, South Africa — Spain defender Gerard Pique is happy to have avoided Brazil in the last 16 of the World Cup as his team prepares to play Portugal on Tuesday.
Spain beat 10-man Chile 2-1 to finish atop Group H on Friday.
"The victory was key because it is fundamental to avoid teams like Brazil," Pique said.
But Pique was the only Spanish player to express joy at having avoided the five-time champions to instead face a Portugal team led by Cristiano Ronaldo at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town on Tuesday.
Most of Spain’s players know their Portuguese opponents from the Spanish league, such as Ronaldo at Real Madrid. Ronaldo’s first season at Madrid was difficult because his club lost both of their matches to Barcelona, which makes up the core of this Spain team. Portugal held Brazil to a 0-0 draw in their last match, to finish second in Group G.
"I’m worried about Portugal, not (Ronaldo)," coach Vicente Del Bosque said. "We saw how they controlled Brazil. They didn’t let them play their football and were strong on the counterattack. There’s no extra satisfaction in getting Portugal over Brazil."
Spain laboured to a hard-fought win over a physical Chile side, which showed that defensive play isn’t the only way to bother the 2008 European champion.
While Switzerland defended and scored on one of its few chances in a 1-0 group win, Chile kept Spain off-kilter by denying it the bulk of possession until Marco Estrada’s sending off after 37 minutes.
"We weren’t at all comfortable in midfield," Xavi Hernandez said, "but we got through it. We’re happy to finish first in the group without playing at an extraordinary level."
Barcelona midfielder Xavi wasn’t at his best against the Chileans, with Spain’s most creative attacks out of midfield mostly coming off the boot of Cesc Fabregas after he replaced Fernando Torres in the 55th.
Under Del Bosque, Spain has recently edged away from all-out attacking football, much like Brazil under Dunga. That has left perhaps Spain’s greatest weapon — its talented midfield — thinner, with Fabregas and David Silva consigned to the bench.
One of those two could still make the starting lineup against Portugal as Xabi Alonso nurses a sprained right ankle, although Silva hasn’t played since the loss to Switzerland.
Alonso’s right ankle isn’t Del Bosque’s only worry — Torres also picked up a right leg injury against Chile, while backup centre back Raul Albiol’s World Cup campaign is in doubt after injuring his right leg in training on Saturday.
Initial testing indicated it was likely Albiol only sustained soft tissue damage around his fibula, although Spain was still awaiting further tests.
But Del Bosque may prefer to partner Javi Martinez with Sergio Busquets as holding midfielders instead. Martinez made his debut after replacing Alonso in the 73rd.
"After the defeat to Switzerland we went through a bad time but what is most important is that we’ve recovered and reached our objective," Del Bosque said. "We deserved to finish where we did after an excellent game — we were better."
Pique happy to avoid Brazil, preparing for Portugal
