Torres says fate favoured Spain in World Cup final
New York, July 20
Substitute Ferran Torres said destiny was written for Spain to win the World Cup after his extra-time strike sealed a 1-0 victory over 10-man Argentina in the final.
Substitute Ferran Torres said destiny was written for Spain to win the World Cup after his extra-time strike sealed a 1-0 victory over 10-man Argentina in Sunday's final.
Torres, who replaced Mikel Oyarzabal in the 62nd minute, swept home Nico Williams' knockdown in the 106th minute to hand Spain its second World Cup title and first since 2010.
"I think in the end the goal came from 47 million people, not just those of us that are here," said Torres, who hadn't scored in the tournament before Sunday.
"Today destiny was written, it was made for us to win. We're far from our people today but we tried to be as close as possible to them."
The Barcelona forward admitted facing Lionel Messi's Argentina in the final had been a daunting prospect, but said Spain never doubted its approach.
"Finals are hard. When you have Messi on the opposing team, you do get worried, but we always backed ourselves and tried to show our football and I think we managed to do it once again," he said.
Torres had come under scrutiny during the tournament before his match-winning intervention on Sunday.
"It was a huge relief [to score]," he said. "I've been criticised throughout the whole tournament, but as I said before destiny was written," he added.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Destiny written? Bhai, please. Spain had more possession but their finishing was poor until Torres stepped up. Argentina missing a player for most of the match helped too. Still, Spain showed composure in extra time.
What a moment for Torres! 🏆 Coming off the bench and scoring in a World Cup final is no small feat. India could learn a lot from Spain's youth development and patience in building attacks. Inspiring!
Argentina were unlucky, especially with that red card. But Spain's tiki-taka style is unmatched. Torres saying "47 million people" is a bit dramatic though. Anyway, congrats to Spain—they played the better football overall.
Messi vs Spain was the final we all wanted! Argentina fought hard but Spain's collective spirit won. Torres' goal was pure class. As an Indian football fan, seeing such quality makes me dream of our future. 🙌⚽
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