Forget Spain's tiki-taka, Chile's brand of football is here to stay

Eduardo Vargas (L) of Chile celebrates scoring his team's first goal against Spain at the World Cup.

The humiliating exit of Spain from the World Cup at the hands of Chile has triggered a plethora of tweets, articles and whatnot on how the whole affair was shocking and unexpected. So here goes another one.

All the talk has focused on Spain’s lack of appetite after years of winning everything in sight, Diego Costa’s inclusion as striker not being La Furia Roja’s usual modus operandi (tiki taka-ing the other team to sleep ), the selection of ‘Saint’ Iker Casillas despite his recent form being more like that of an English keeper rather than the wall we’ve seen help the Spaniards win the last World Cup and the last two Euros. The fact of the matter is that this debacle was as much a result of Spain’s bungling as it was a result of Chile ripping Spain apart like a hot knife through butter time after time the entire match. Chile besting Spain being an upset of monumental heights can only come from either ignorance or stupidity.

This Chile team is a sight to behold. The speed, tenacity and brute force with which they attack is a testament to the attacking philosophies of their coach Jorge Sampaoli, a Bielsita himself. The team is, in essence, a perfect reflection of a Marcelo Bielsa side. They are fast, frenetic and forever in motion. They play, dangerous edgy football at such high speeds that even the viewer is moved to hold onto their chest and catch their breath. Anyone who saw this Chile team play England off the park in 2013 in Wembley can attest to them not being lightweights in international football today.

The reason it seems, for the shock is Chile not perhaps being the team with the most glamorous names in world football save Alexis Sanchez of Barcelona and Arturo Vidal of Juventus. This logic is to some extent correct but it still isn’t truly indicative of Chile’s strength with regard to its depth in terms of players playing for European clubs. Their goalkeeper Claudio Bravo of Real Sociedad, Isla of Juventus, Gary Medel of Cardiff and Eduardo Vargas of Valencia all play for top tier teams in their respective leagues. These names may pale in comparison to the plethora of Spain’s superstars, but football in the modern age is based more on the system the team plays and the player’s suitability to it and less on the players involved as was evident from the seasons both Liverpool and Atleti have just had.

The personification of this team though is not Sanchez, but Arturo Vidal, possibly the best ‘football’ player of this generation. The man even looks like a personification of the team. His hair , demeanour and playing style are all you need to see to get what Chile’s game is about. He transitions from defence to midfield to attack to midfield to defence so fast you could blame your eyes for acting stupid and your brain for playing tricks on you. He dribbles, passes, scores, blocks and intercepts like a footballing God. His athleticism can be confounding as well as unbelievably befuddling. Chile are in a nutshell, everything Spain and their club counterparts (Barca, Bayern) are not. Uncontrolled, impulsive and just a bit crazy, they are, to paraphrase Jurgen Klopp ‘Death Metal Football’.

Spain shall rise again. The likes of Mata, Navas, Busquets and countless others won’t be down for long. They may just need to get their hunger back. They may need a clearout; but this Spanish Armada has its day and is now sinking. Let’s not miss a wonderful chance to revel in the throes of another brand of football which has been waiting in the wings for some years now.

Let us forget the opera of Spain for a while and get ready to get our heartbeats racing to the roar and growl of Vidal and co’s ‘Red Hot Chile Peppers’.