NEW DELHI: Spain’s complete domination, airtight defence and relentless pressing drew unanimous praise from India’s former footballers, who said the European champions deserved the World Cup title after neutralising Lionel Messi and overpowering Argentina across 120 minutes.
In what was seen as Messi’s grand swansong, Spain’s second-half substitute Ferran Torres scored in the extra time (106th minute) to deny Argentina back-to-back World Cup titles.
Former India captain Victor Amalraj said Spain, who secured their second World Cup after 2010, completely controlled the final and could have won by a much bigger margin.
