Sergio Busquets has warned Wesley Sneijder he 'won't have time to think' during Sunday's World Cup Final.
Spain looking to shut out Dutch star
Sergio Busquets has warned Wesley Sneijder he 'won't have time to think' during Sunday's World Cup Final.
Sneijder has been the stand-out performer for Holland in their run to the nation's first final since 1978, weighing in with five goals to lead the scoring charts with Spain's David Villa.
The 26-year-old midfielder has had a great season with Inter Milan, winning the Italian double and the Champions League.
Busquets is well aware of Sneijder's threat after Inter overcame Busquets' Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals and it will be the 21-year-old midfielder's job to nullify Sneijder.
"He's a great player and he's playing great," said Busquets. "We'll try to stop him like any other player.
No time
"We'll try to deny him even the time to think because otherwise he can create some good chances for their forwards."
Busquets insists Spain will not be making any allowances for Holland's tactics, though, with the European champions having shrugged off a shock loss to Switzerland in their opener to rediscover their passing game and reach the nation's first-ever World Cup Final.
"We've come up against everything - opponents like Switzerland who sat back and others like Chile and Paraguay who close you down," he said.
"(Holland) will play their game, both teams will play the way they know how."
Seven of Spain's starting line-up in their semi-final win over Germany are Barcelona players and Spain's style is dictated by the passing game which swept Barca to the treble in 2009.
Dutch influence
And Dutch greats such as Johan Cruyff, Louis van Gaal and Frank Rijkaard have had a major influence on the Barca academy - the Cantera - which has produced the likes of Busquets, Xavi and Andres Iniesta.
"I can talk about Van Gaal and Cruyff, they did a great job and developed the game and philosophy at Cantera," said Busquets.
"Rijkaard launched a 4-3-3, he started that system (at Barca) and in the national team. That helped."
Busquets has come into the team following Spain's Euro 2008 victory but he refused to compare the current side to that which triumphed in Vienna.
"There are no games or tournaments that can be compared," he said.
"We've still got the same spine but I don't want to compare.
"Football is always getting more difficult. The national team has reached a good level and is working hard.
"We played our best match against Germany (in the semi-final) and I hope the best is yet to come."
