No, the U.S. drawing against England doesn’t really count.
Kudos to the Swiss for beating La Furia Roja. The tournament needed that. And arguably, so did Spain. In the run-up to the Cup, its players and coach spent too much time protesting, disingenuously, that they were not the favorites. That struck me as the wrong tone: it suggested they were spending too much time worrying about the tag.
Here’s hoping the defeat will act like a bucket of cold water in Spanish faces, forcing them to quit thinking about who is and isn’t the favorite, and instead concentrate on playing the beautiful game they’re capable of.
The avuncular Vincente del Bosque has work to do, infusing his disheartened troops. But he should be able to convince them that they can make short work of Honduras and Chile — provided they play like they’re the favorites.