The oracle, the octopus Paul

In the strained previous hours to the second game of Spain In South Africa 2010, in front of Honduras, the first news of the team arrived at the headquarters of the National Team in Potchefstroom octopus Paul, which would later become a mass phenomenon that Rodríguez Zapatero promised an escort and to whom the Iranian leader Ahmadineyad qualified as “a ridiculous agent of the western propaganda and superstition, and therefore a symbol of decay and rot. “Beyond the difference in criteria regarding Octopus vulgaris, after ten years and without the emotion and the collective hysteria that lived in Spain During the World Cup in South Africa, it must be recognized that the Ahmadineyad posture was much more rational and much less romantic than Zapatero's. But the thing is, the octopus Paul became a world phenomenon, to the point of starring in the plot of two movies in China a statue at the Sea Life Center in Oberhausen (Germany), a dispute between Italy and England for the origin of the cephalopod, a mention on the FIFA website, a purchase offer from the Madrid zoo and his appointment as “favorite friend” of Carballiño (Ourense). All this without counting that, until his death on October 26, 2010, any issue related to the octopus Paul always raised the passion of the audience. Why was he protagonist of several programs of TV. We will return in these Memories of South Africa on dear Paul later, to remember how he ate the mussel from Germany, first, and then the one from Holland. And what those mussels supposed for Spain in general and for Carballino in particular.

Meanwhile, beyond oracles of animal origin, Spain surrendered to reality. Despite the defeat against Switzerland, it was the team that had produced the best statistics out of the 32 that had debuted in the World Cup. The confidence of the fans, yet touched for the disappointment of the debut, was kept. Hundreds of followers were arriving every day to Johannesburg to join the Red Tide, the national team footballers They insisted that “there is no need to change style or system.” But Honduras had become an all or nothing, and its technician, Reinaldo Rueda, made a disturbing statement: “Switzerland demonstrated the way hurt Spain“That reflection made everyone think that, again, La Roja was going to meet with a rival closed to the brim, ten players behind the ball. No one knew then that he who is today the top scorer in the history of the National Team, the Asturian Villa, I was going to start a fabulous stroke that would take flying to Spain …