Spain rallied to beat a strong Chilean side 3-2, despite going down 0-2 in the first half and appearing punchless for much of the match. Chile completely dominated an out of sorts Spanish team in the first 45 minutes, and were a couple of Iker Casillas saves away from ending the half with a third goal, after two fantastic strikes by Isla and Vargas.
Spain Vs. Chile, 2011 International Friendly: Spain Rally To Beat Chile 3-2
Spain rallied to beat Chile 3-2 despite conceding two goals in the first half. The referee decided the match in the 90th minute, awarding an unfair penalty to the Spaniards.
Spain came roaring back in the second half despite the fact that coach Vicente del Bosque decided not to make any changes to his makeshift defense: Andrés Iniesta blasted a long shot that took a lucky (or unlucky) deflection to beat Bravo for the first goal, then Cesc Fábregas slotted home a perfect through ball about five minutes after he entered.
The match should have ended there: a 2-2 draw seemed a reasonable result based on the quality of play from both sides, and the match was winding down. But in the 90th minute, Álvaro Arbeloa simulated a foul in the penalty box, and successfully tricked referee Laperriere into calling a penalty. Cesc missed the spot kick, but slotted away a lucky rebound to win the match for Spain.
But of course things didn't end there. Incensed about the officiating, some of the Chilean players barked insults at Andrés Iniesta, who reacted by shove-punching the nearest opposing player. Mayhem ensued: infuriated Chilean players rushed Iniesta, as Spanish players flooded on to the field. Second-string keeper Pepe Reina, who had come in for Iker Casillas at halftime, bolted up the pitch and began throwing punches; newly-acquired Barcelona super-sub Alexis Sánchez jawed with some of his new teammates.
The end of the match--the incorrect penalty and the brawl--obscured what was otherwise an entertaining match: Chile was completely dominant in the first half, running circles around a Spanish defense composed of a second-string pairing of Javi Martinez and Raúl Albiol in the center, and Spain fought back to tie the game at 2 with a couple of superb goals.
Chilean fans should be happy with the way their team played, and not focus on the result, as it is extremely misleading; Spanish fans should be worried about their team despite the result--they looked toothless in the first half, and collected a couple lucky bounces in the second to scrape out an undeserved win.
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