Spain qualify for 2010 World Cup
Thursday, September 10, 2009 @ 3:22 PM
European champions Spain booked their place at the 2010 World Cup following a 3-0 win over Group Five rivals Estonia.
Goals from Cesc Fabregas, Santi Cazorla and Juan Mata handed the Spaniards their eighth win from eight qualifiers played, with two fixtures remaining.
Victory took Spain eight points clear of closest rivals Bosnia-Herzegovina who drew at home to Turkey.
"We can be proud of what we've done, it gives us confidence for the the World Cup," said Arsenal midfielder Fabregas.
Coach Vicente del Bosque added: "It wasn't our best game but we have qualified for the World Cup and that is the main thing.
"We are not thinking about the World Cup just yet. We just have to prepare for the next few games which we want to win and continue our momentum."
Spain have never won the World Cup and their best performance to date came in 1950 when they finished fourth.
At the last World Cup in Germany, Spain topped their group to progress but then lost 3-1 to France in the second round.
However, many will expect Spain to progress much further in South Africa.
Coach del Bosque inherited a side that predecessor Luis Aragones led to Euro 2008 glory - their first major title since 1964.
The former Real Madrid boss Del Bosque began his tenure in impressive fashion, becoming the first international manager to win 10 successive games from his debut.
The run came to a surprising end against the United States at the 2009 Confederations Cup semi-finals, but during that competition Spain claimed the world record of 15 consecutive wins.
Source: BBC Sport