Spain are European champions once again, and just like in 2008 and 2012, they are deserving winners at Euro 2024. Their numbers from this summer’s tournament prove as much.
So close.
England came so, so close to ending 58 years of hurt with a triumph at Euro 2024, but ultimately, and predictably, they again fell agonisingly short, this time with a defeat to Spain in the final.
After the exceptional Nico Williams’ opener shortly after half-time, Cole Palmer’s slick finish had given England fans hope, only for Spain to turn the screw as the game neared its end and eventually find a winner from substitute Mikel Oyarzabal.
This won’t help heal the wounds that the England squad and fans everywhere are licking on Monday morning but, if we’re all honest, Spain were deserved winners.
Both on Sunday night in Berlin and in a broader sense across the entire tournament, they were the best team.
“As always in these games, it’s fine margins,” England manager Gareth Southgate said after suffering a second successive European Championship final defeat. “But I think they [Spain] were the best team in the tournament and over the piece they deserved to win.”
They were the most entertaining team to watch, the highest scorers, the best pressers, and by far the most coherent football team. Almost every other side at Euro 2024 either looked entirely disjointed or put in the odd disjointed performance. Spain simply clicked.
They scored four more goals than anyone else (15), and they also ranked first for non-penalty goals per game (2.1). They were also clear at the top of the charts for expected goals (13.0), and they outperformed everyone else for goals compared to xG, with an overperformance of 2.0.
They were miles clear at the top for regains within 40 metres of the opposition goal line, with 76, and second when looking at their per-game rate (10.0), behind Croatia who only contested the group stage. They were also top for the number of those turnovers that led to a shot (15) and for those that led to a goal (2).
There was a coherence to the way they moved the ball and to their pressing that didn’t fit the international tournament they were playing in. They played something far closer to club football than any other team at Euro 2024; Germany were probably their closest challengers in that regard, but Spain saw them off in the quarter-finals.
Speaking of which, while England had a rather kind route to the final, Spain had a tough draw almost all the way through. They were in what many perceived to be the ‘group of death’ alongside reigning champions Italy and perennial tournament overachievers Croatia, and although they avoided a big team in the round of 16, they then saw off the three pre-tournament favourites according to the Opta supercomputer, in Germany, France and England.
Defensively, they weren’t anything like as effective, conceding too many chances and being ‘outscored’ in xG terms in three of their seven games, but it didn’t matter because they were so good going forward.
They also had a few standout individuals. There were the flying wingers, Lamine Yamal, who smashed the record as the youngest scorer in the history of the European Championship with his goal in the semi-final victory over France, and Nico Williams, who was a constant threat against every opponent he faced and was crucial in the final.
Yamal became the youngest ever player to feature in a World Cup or European Championship final at 17 years and one day, surpassing Pelé’s record from the 1958 World Cup – 17 years and 249 days. He also either had a shot or created a chance following a ball carry on 15 occasions at Euro 2024, which was at least four more than anyone else.
Meanwhile, at the age of 22 years and two days, Williams became the second-youngest player to score in a Euros final, with his goal – 69 seconds into the second half – the earliest second-half goal a Euros final has seen. Williams posted a higher expected assists total than any other player at the tournament (2.06). Yamal was second (2.01).
Then there were central midfielders Rodri and Fabián Ruiz, who bossed almost every opponent they came up against – and when Rodri had to go off in the final against England, Martín Zubimendi did a sterling job in his place.
Rodri and Fabián ranked first (23) and second (18) for regains in the middle third at Euro 2024, and third (6) and first (14) for regains in the attacking third. They out-passed, out-pressed and outplayed just about everyone they came up against.
Dani Olmo was an incredible option off the bench early on in the tournament, but after Pedri’s injury against Germany, he proved himself capable of playing from the start for this Spain team. Olmo made some huge contributions when it really mattered, scoring three goals and adding an assist in Spain’s four knockout games, as well as making a goal-saving clearance off the line from Marc Guéhi’s header in the final.
At the back, Aymeric Laporte showed that his move to Saudi Arabia doesn’t mean he can’t do it at the top level with a string of fine, composed performances, while Marc Cucurella looked something like the best left-back in the world. In goal, Unai Simón was assured and reliable both in his shot-stopping and with the ball at his feet.
Spain spent a higher proportion of their games leading (55%) than any other team at Euro 2024 – which is pretty incredible given they played seven games – so it is fitting that they end the tournament as winners. After the semi-final, they had become the first team to ever win six games at a European Championship, and then they went on to win a seventh.
From going 1-0 up against Croatia only 29 minutes into their Euro 2024 campaign to seeing off England in the final, Spain looked like champions.
England passed up a huge opportunity to win a first European Championship, but everything about Spain’s numbers proved Luis de La Fuente’s side were deserving Euro 2024 winners.
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