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A brace by David Silva and a neat finish by David Villa gave Spain a comfortable 3-1 win over Scotland to finally end Scottish hopes of qualifying for Euro 2012
Scotland needed to match or better the result of Group I runners-up rivals The Czech Republic or else face qualification heartache yet again.
Given that the Czechs went on to record a straight forward 4-1 win against the groups whipping boys Lithuania, nothing but a victory would have sufficed for Craig Levein’s men.
It was highly improbable and turned out to be mission impossible for the visitors as the reigning European and World Champions ruthlessly tore into the Scottish defence with vigour.
Manchester City forward David Silva squeezed a left-footed shot underneath goalkeeper Alan McGregor as early as the sixth minute, before doubling the lead on the stroke of halftime with a neatly placed curling effort.
Barcelona forward David Villa then scored his 50th goal for La Roja Furia in the 54th minute when he swept home David Silva’s pass to end the match as a contest for good.
Scottish substitute David Goodwillie then scored a late penalty after Victor Valdes scythed down Craig Mackail-Smith, but the goal was scant consolation for the Scots who, yet again, miss out on a major tournament.
Scottish striker Steven Naismith’s reaction to the loss: “Spain are simply unplayable!” he dejectedly told BBC Sport after the match.
“They knock the ball about so quick and so crisp it’s hard to get the ball. We knew we had to try and do our bit and unfortunately we failed to do it.” Sigh…
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