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Spain started their qualification on the down side as a win over Liechtenstein was followed by two away defeats, 3-2 against Northern Ireland and 2-0 against Sweden. However, after much criticism in the Spanish press, one draw was all the setback Spain allowed in the remaining qualifying games.
Spain's coach Luis Aragones said it best after they secured top spot in Group F, saying: "Spain has been qualifying for tournaments for many years, so this isn't a success but simply doing our duty".
Spain scored 23 goals and allowed 8 in the 9 wins, 2 defeats and one draw in the qualifying.
They will start their campaign on June 10 against Russia in Innsbruck, Austria, after being drawn in Group D alongside Russia, Sweden and Greece.
The team:
The preferred formation for Aragones is 4-5-1, but he is also known to deploy 4-4-2. Iker Casillas (Real Madrid) will be on goal for his fourth international tournament with the Spanish senior team. Carles Puyol and Carlos Marchena will pair in the centre of the defence, with Sergio Ramos on the right and Joan Capdevilla (Viillarreal) on the left.
Frontrunners for the midfield are Xavi Hernandez (Barcelona), and Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal), Valencia’s David Silva, Andres Iniesta (Barcelona). Marcos Senna (Villarreal) is also a serious candidate, as well as Xabi Alonso (Liverpool)Ruben del la Red (Real Madrid) and Santi Cazorla.(Villarreal).
In the attack, Aragones has Valencia's David Villa, who scored 7 goals in qualifying, and Liverpool's Fernando Torres. Real Madrid’s skipper Raul Gonzalez, who has not represented Spain since September 2006, has not been recalled. Sergio Garcia (Zaragoza) and Daniel Guiza (Mallorca) also made the final line-up.
Coach's profile:
Luis Aragones was famous for his striking abilities while playing for Atletico Madrid in the 60's and 70's, before he turned his attention to coaching.
During his coaching career Aragones had spells at some of the best teams in Spain like Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla, Valencia, Espanyol, Betis, and Mallorca. With Atletico he won the league in the season of 1995/96.
Aragones took over the Spanish National team after the Euro 2004 and led them to the World Cup 2006.
Team record:
In their seven previous appearances at the European Championships, Spain has reached the finals on two occasions, and have won the title once in 1964 when they hosted the tournament.
At the Euro 2004 Spain was eliminated in the group stage, finishing third behind Portugal and Greece.
Their best result in the 12 appearances at the FIFA World Cup is fourth place. (Brazil 1950)
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