Spain's men's national team played a friendly against an improvedPortugal national team Wednesday night in Lisbon where the Portuguese dominated the 2010 World Cup Champions with a 4-0 victory. This loss for Spain is the worst loss they have suffered since 1963 when Scotland defeated them 6-2. Surprisingly the Spaniards have only won three out of the last six games since the World Cup, and against the sub par teams of Liechtenstein, Lithuania and Scotland, and have allowed 12 goals in only four games! It's very unexpected from a team that months ago had the world at their feet at the World Cup in South Africa. This loss especially comes to a surprise with Spain's superstar forwards David Villa and Fernando Torres who have scored a combined total of 71 goals and excellent defense man Sergio Ramos. These players played no where close to their performance at the World Cup. Portugal's versatility up front made the Spanish defense suffer. With three different scorers in Carlos Martins, Helder Postiga and Hugo Almeida Portugal was able to keep Spain's defense busy the entire 90 minute game, scoring first in the 45th minute and scoring consecutively throughout the rest of the match. ESPN covered the match and said it was a great moral win for the Portuguese national team who were defeated by Spain in the second round of the World Cup and forced to go home early.
Here are highlights from the game provided by Youtube:
Worldcorrespondents.com shows a Portugal player
winning a ball from Spain in their 4-0 victory.
The win for Portugal against Spain also brings an interesting spin behind this battle between Portugal and Spain involving the bidding of the location of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. The FIFA ethics committee began an investigation of the two nations when it was rumored in an English press that the two nations had conspired to vote for each other so that both countries could have the World Cup in their respected country. There was not enough sufficient evidence to hold either country responsible leaving Spain and Portugal in the running for the 2018 World Cup along with England, Russia, Belgium, and Holland. These two countries hope that together they can bring the World Cup, if not two World Cups, to Europe and their countries.
caughtoffside.com shows the world and slogan of FIFA.
The FIFA committee has a big decision to make about the
location of the 2018 World Cup.
Spanning from 1932-1981 Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Henry Armstrong, and Joe Louis were known as the best boxers in history but in 2010 Manny Pacquiao accomplished something that has set him in boxing history as one of the greatest fighters of all time. On Saturday, November 13th Pacquiao fought welterweight titlist Antonio Margarito for the Jr. Middleweight Championship of the world and won.What's the big deal about that? Pacquiao's victory made him the first boxer in history to win ten championship titles in eight different weight divisions.
Pacquiao gets weighed before the fight.
Over Pacquiao's career he's won titles at 112, 122, 126,130,135,140, 147, and 154 pounds, spanning his weight class from Flyweight to Jr. Middleweight. He was named Fighter of the Decade for the 2000's by the Boxing Writers Association of America, who also named him Fighter of the Year for 2006,2008 and 2009. Pacquiao's record currently stands at 52 wins, with 38 knockouts and 14 decisions, only 3 losses and 2 draws. Though Pacquiao boasts an incredible record and awards to go with it, it was the way in which he won his last fight that has boxing fans all over the world in awe of this man.
Pacquiao fought Margarito in a contracted fight at 150 lbs, but at Friday night's weigh in Pacquiao only weighed in at about 145 lbs and only pick up three more pounds to fill him out to 148 against 165 lb Margarito on fight night. The weight difference wasn't the only staggering statistic against Pacquiao. Margarito also held a 4½-inch height advantage and 6-inch reach advantage over Pacquiao. Though Margarito looked to be at a physical advantage Pacquiao seemed to be favored to win the fight. In which Pacquiao did, winning every round of the 12 round fight. Pacquiao threw 1,069 punches connecting on 474 of them, an impressive 44% connection percentage, and threw 713 power shots connecting on 411, for a 58% connection percentage. Marganto, who boasts a 38-7 record with 27 knockouts, fought hard and refused to quit even in the final rounds of the fight when both of his eyes had almost swollen completely shut. Marganto was taken to the hospital after the fight and underwent surgery for a fractured orbital bone in his face. Pacquiao won with honor and dignity, saying after the fight that he asked the referee to call it numerous times during the fight stating that he "didn't want to damage him permanently. That's not what boxing is about." All of this information can be found at ESPN's article on Pacquiao and the fight.
The differences show in the two fighters.
ESPN weighs in on Pacquiao's fight with Margarito and his upcoming fights:
Pacquiao has only one more contender to fight that would solidify him as the best fighter in the world currently. Floyd Mayweather, the closest "pound-for-pound" fighter to Pacquiao, declined fighting Pacquiao in Saturday's match which was given to Margarito instead. No fight has been set for these two boxers so boxing fans can only wait with anticipation to these two fighters duke it out for the title of world's greatest boxer.
