How Rodri and 19-year-old wonderkid stifled Lionel Messi to shut out Argentina and deliver Spain World Cup glory

SPAIN are World Cup winners after securing their second global title with a dramatic 1-0 victory over Argentina. Luis de la Fuente’s side came out on top in a tense final in New York, leaving a devastated Lionel Messi in tears at the final whistle. Spain came out on top following a 1-0 win in the World Cup final Credit: Getty Argentina were left in tears after succumbing to Ferran Torres’ extra-time winner Credit: Reuters SunSport’s tactical expert Dean Scoggins broke down the historic victory on Tactics Exposed, revealing how Spain won the midfield battle before finally finding the breakthrough in extra time. The first thing was Rodri. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! He was absolutely sensational and fully deserved to win the Golden Ball. In a tournament packed with superstars, he was Spain’s tactical leader from start to finish. Only three players in World Cup history have recorded more than 100 touches in a final, and Spain had two of them in Rodri and Pau Cubarsi. That tells you everything about who controlled the game. Cubarsi deserves enormous credit as well. At just 19, he had more than 100 touches and completed 19 line-breaking passes from centre-back. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS He wasn’t just defending brilliantly against Messi and Julian Alvarez, he was constantly breaking Argentina’s lines with his passing. Spain’s structure made life almost impossible for Argentina. They build that red wall around Rodri, so every time you think you’ve escaped their press, the ball comes straight back. Rodri repeatedly won possession between Messi and Alvarez before recycling it through Cubarsi and starting another attack. Spain had dominated the wide areas throughout the tournament, but for long periods of the final they simply weren’t getting enough players into the penalty area. They had all the possession but not enough runners beyond the ball to really hurt Argentina. Luis de la Fuente’s substitutions changed that. Ferran Torres and Mikel Merino were told to attack the box, while Nico Williams kept making runs beyond the ball. Ferran Torres found the back of the net in the 106th minute Credit: Getty Spain stars wasted no time getting the celebrations underway after the full-time whistle Credit: Getty Add Enzo Fernandez’s red card into the equation and Spain suddenly had the overload they needed. For the winning goal, Williams and Merino occupied the defenders, opening the space for Torres to arrive and finish. Argentina, meanwhile, let Messi down. They only managed two shots all game, both in extra time, and never gave him the service he thrives on. Messi doesn’t need much, but he does need something, and he just didn’t get it. Their discipline also deserted them. We know Argentina play on the edge, but there’s a fine line between aggression and losing your head. Enzo Fernandez crossed it with a needless second booking, leaving his side a man down at the worst possible moment. Comment now