Fiesta

First Holland, then the Czech Republic, and now Spain - the 2006 FIFA World Cup has a new team of dark horses, courtesy of a 4-0 thrashing of Ukraine.

Not only did the Spaniards dominate this game, they played arguably the best football of the tournament to date and in Fernando Torres they had a young striker who combined pace and grace and power, and completely eclipsed his more elderly £30 million rated rival Shevchenko, in a dazzling performance that culminated in a tremendous volley for the 4th goal.

With their impressive strength in depth, including 19 year old midfield substitute Cesc Fabregas of Arsenal who in the 77th minute became his country’s youngest ever World Cup player, Spain demand to be taken seriously in this tournament.