World Cup Final LIVE!

Welcome to thetalkofsport.com’s World Cup Final LIVE blog. To view the latest updates manually refresh (or hit F5). Netherlands 0-1 Spain (Iniesta, 116).

FULL-TIME: SPAIN WIN THE WORLD CUP

Great scenes for the Spanish, but the Dutch are livid with the referee. In truth, they should’ve been down to 8 or 9 and Howard Webb was lenient with them. Iniesta produced when he most needed to and stole it at the end. But, when I say stole they totally deserved it and dominated the match.

The Netherlands kicked the Spanish all over the shop and got what was coming to them. The best team won the World Cup – what more can you ask for? Well done to Spain – look out for all the reaction here on thetalkofsport.com this week. Thanks for reading.

32: Holland have Spain pinned in. Spain clear it long and as Torres goes racing after it he pulls up injured. It’s all kicking off with one thing or another.

30: There will be some added time here, but not much. Spain are on the brink of history. Xavi kicks the ball away and is booked.

28: That is dramatic. Iniesta booked for the celebration, Mathijsen booked for protests. Casillas was crying with joy as his teammates celebrated at the far end. Spain are so close to doing it.

26: GOAL: NETHERLANDS 0-1 SPAIN (INIESTA). At long, long last. Spain have their goal at last. Iniesta is through down the right hand side, let’s the ball bounce and smashes it into the bottom corner. Clinical finish, clinical goal, and they deserve it.

25: Sneijder hits a free-kick towards goal from way out. It takes two deflections, one of them huge, but a goal-kick is given. Ooops.

23: Howard Webb is very, very kind there. Robben kicks the ball away after being caught offside. He’s already been booked, but the ref just has a word this time. I think he should’ve walked.

21: The Dutch could lose another one if they keep this up. Van Der Wiel – one of the few not to have been booked in orange – sees yellow for fouling Iniesta. Free-kick wasted. Again.

19: Well, it was going to happen sooner or later, wasn’t it? Holland down to ten men – Heitinga walks. Xavi clips it over the top to Iniesta and Heitinga pulls him down as he was going through. Obvious second yellow card.

16: Well, well, well. David Villa off. Fernando Torres on. That’s a big gamble because Villa has been Spain’s main man. That said, Torres will be bang up for this. Let’s see. Script wrriten?

HALF-TIME: Well, Spain have done everything but score in this match. They’ve been the better team, but they need to get that all important goal.

13: Great play by Fabregas. Direct run towards goal and pokes it towards the bottom corner from 20 yards, but wide. Good effort.

11: Ooooh that looked in. Jesus Navas into the penalty area, shooting towards the near post but it gets deflected wide. It really did look in the bottom corner. So close!

9: Spain carve Holland open again but Iniesta really needs to do better. He has Villa to his left in space, and actually could shoot towards goal himself as things develop. But he does neither and gets tackled. He just needed to make a decision and Spain could be up. They’ve done everything but score.

5: Another big, big chance to win the World Cup goes begging. Fabregas goes through on goal, on his left foot, tries to slot it across goal but good stop by the keeper. Holland go up the other end and win a corner and Mathijsen might feel he should do better too. Well, it’s an open goal actually. But his header goes over.

2: Hmmm… that could be a penalty. Maybe not. Xavi is brought down as he goes to shoot at goal, but nothing doing. There is a corner though. But wasted.

0: Extra-time kicks off. Nine players on yellow cards remember, six of those in orange. To be fair to Howard Webb, he might actually have been even stricter. It’s not been an easy game to referee this one.

9.23pm: So – will Spain knock the door down? Will the Dutch spring a counter-attack to steal it? Will they even finish with 11 men? Find out in the next 30 minutes.

9.21pm: Spain have been the better team but just couldn’t find the finish.

93: This game has just drifted to full-time. Both teams were settling for that extra 30 minutes and they’ve got it.

85: Am I really going to have to keep going for another 30 minutes? Fabregas is ready to come on for Spain. Alonso makes way.

83: Robben, who spends most of his life diving around and moaning, is for once honest in staying on his feet as he went through past Puyol when he might’ve gone down and got the Barca man sent off. The ball ends up in Casillas’ hands and Robben is booked for protesting.

81: Great play from Iniesta to get into the penalty area but turns onto his right when he should’ve just shot on his left. All the same, Sneijder makes a brilliant tackle to stop him in his tracks.

80: The Dutch can’t even get out of their half. Spain are bossing this big time – but can they get a goal before the 90 is up? They’re desperate for one.

77: Great move between Xavi and Villa. They are really getting into their groove. Villa’s shot blocked behind for a corner. Xavi whips it in and it’s on a plate for Sergio Ramos. That’s an absolute dolly for any defender getting on the end of a set-piece. He somehow – somehow! – guides his header over the crossbar. He should score. He really should. One sitter each missed.

76: Another chance for Villa far post but another volley high and wide. Spain are knocking on the door.

74: Heitinga brings down Iniesta right on the edge of the area and Spain have a free-kick. Good position this, and Xavi and Villa are looking at it. Villa hits it but well wide. This is frustrating.

72: The game is slowly but surely getting more and more stretched and, as a result, becoming a better spectacle. Spain look the more likely, but it’s still all square.

70: Well I’m going to call that as a brilliant block rather than a terrible miss. Great play down the right by Spain, the ball just about squeezes all the way across to Villa at the far post. He has the goal at his mercy, but somehow a couple of Dutch defenders get back in time to block it over. Great last-ditch defending.

65: Routine yellow card. Capdevila trips Van Persie as he was running clear down the right and Webb has no choice. He’s running out of players to book. Free-kick wasted.

62: Oh dear – that’s a huge, huge, huge miss. Robben goes clear on goal. He has time, he has space, he has the goal at his mercy. He waits, and seems to send Casillas the wrong way. But he can’t lift it high enough and the Spaniard just about gets a foot to it to knock it behind. Turning point? I reckon.

59: This is very much a nearly game. It needs either a goal or a red card. Pedro goes off and Jesus Navas comes on. Interestingly, Torres is over-looked there.

58: Heitinga heads towards goal, but he was offside. Missed anyway.

56: Well that’s an interesting decision. Heitinga is late in on David Villa but allows play to go on. Villa is rolling about like a baby, and so Spain knock the ball out. Heitinga gets booked, even though it looked like Webb didn’t see it. Still, looked to be correct. It’s all getting a bit tetchy.

54: Foul by Van Bronkhorst on Sergio Ramos so Spain free-kick. Another yellow card too. Can Spain find a set-piece of quality to unlock the Dutch? Not too far away. Xavi whips it but comfortably wide.

50: Robben with a sighter, comfortable for Casillas. Bit more lively already in this half though, I hope these two teams keep it up. Torres warming up.

48: Spain start the second half the way they started the first – can they keep it up this time? Villa wins a corner and Xavi is the man to deliver. Howard has a word with a couple of players about jossling – pretty standard of referees this tournament. Puyol gets on the end of it, but can’t get much on it. It does, however, land at the feet of Capdevila but he can’t organise himself quickly enough to guide it on target. Good chance that, but wrong player. Spain continue to come forward.

46: Spain get us underway in the second half. They’ve won each of their knock-out matches so far 1-0 with a goal in the second half. Same again tonight? Maybe, but don’t tell Holland.

HALF TIME: So, nervy first half and the second half will surely be better. It’ll be interesting to see if Van Bommel and De Jong tone it down though.

HALF TIME: Sergio Ramos came closest for Spain, Robben came closest for Holland. But it’s 0-0 at the half way point and it’s not been brilliant.

45: Two minutes of time added on at the end of a slightly disappointing first half. Still, that does bring about a Dutch chance. Robben fires towards goal from the edge of the box but Casillas down smartly. Holland started slowly but finishing the brighter. And that’s half time.

43: Sneijder gives away a free-kick and Alonso drills it goal-wards from some distance. Hits it beautifully, but wayward.

41: On a slightly different subject – at least this is the last time we’ll be forced to watch a football match whilst listening to those flippin’ horns. Every cloud. The game is boring – typical of the World Cup really.

39: Van Bommel takes Xavi out. He is walking an absolute tightrope. Xavi whips the free-kick in but cleared away.

38: Pedrito shoots wide from distance. Or Pedro as we all know him by.

36: Sneijder wins a corner. This hasn’t been a great game really, I can’t dress it up. As I type – that’s a really decent chance. A short corner is worked and Mathijsen has space to pick his spot in the penalty area. He doesn’t even connect with the ball. Air shot.

33: Nice sporting moment that from Van Persie. The ball is played back originally to Casillas (who’d thrown it out of play so Puyol could receive treatment). Casillas mis-judges it in the air and has to tip it away for a corner. The Arsenal man just rolls the corner kick back to the Real Madrid man – so order is restored.

31: Well one of these teams to step it up now. A goal will bring this final to life, but it doesn’t really look like one is coming (hopes that this will now bring a goal…).

27: The Dutch have worked their way back into this and it’s become more of an even game. De Jong picks up a booking now and that should probably have been red. Alonso goes to bring the ball out of the sky and De Jong literally flies at him and his studs hit him in the chest. If that hits someone in the shin you’d be asking for a straight red – that’s broken ribs territory. He should’ve gone in my book.

23: And now Sergio Ramos gets booked for a foul on Kuyt. Four bookings in the first quarter of the match – doesn’t bode well, does it? Sneijder whips the cross in but Casillas plucks it out of the air brilliantly.

22: Van Bommel picks up a booking for a crunching challenge on Iniesta and hands up who’s surprised? That’s a really nasty challenge, it deserves more than a booking really but it’s not quite a red. If there was an orange card…

20: Robben is up and motoring and wins a corner. First time he’s really got going and we’re 20 minutes in.

16: Puyol takes out Robben and now he receives a yellow card. Howard Webb stamping his authority on the World Cup Final. Or something.

13: Spain are bossing this and look very comfortable in their environment. Not rushing anything, just stroking it around. Holland, on the other hand, look nervous in possession and can’t keep hold of it. Van Persie clatters Capdevila and gets a yellow card. Can have no complaints.

11: How has Heitinga not put that through his own net? Sergio Ramos goes past his man far too easily and slides it across goal, but Heitinga – just a couple of yards from his own goal – somehow manages to dig it over his own crossbar. From the corner Spain work it across to the far post where Villa is un-marked, but he fires his first time volley into the side-netting. Not an easy chance, but you don’t leave David Villa un-marked in your penalty area. Holland are struggling.

9: Spain have started much the brighter and are dominating the ball. That said, a dodgy pass by Busquets gives Kuyt a chance to fire at goal, but straight at Casillas.

6: First chance, first save. Sergio Ramos gets in front of his man to guide Alonso’s free-kick on target. But Stekelenburg gets down smartly to beat it away. Good effort that, and decent save.

3: Couple of early fouls by the Dutch. Certainly bang up for it and are looking to get about Xavi and Iniesta.

0: And we’re off!

7.28pm: Anthems, check. Introductions, check. Several mentions of Howard Webb, check. I think we’re ready to go!

7.21pm: A couple of bits of housekeeping before we get started; if you want to get involved leave us a comment at the bottom of the blog or email us at info@thetalkofsport.com. The teams are now emerging from the tunnel. the ITV commentators have just stated that these are the best two teams never to have won the World Cup. Probably not wrong either. That still hasn’t stopped me from switching over to the BBC though!

7.20pm: And, of course, the Spanish side too. By the way, I have money on Spain tonight so excuse any slight bias throughout this blog!…

• 01 Casillas (Captain)
• 03 Pique
• 05 Puyol
• 11 Capdevila
• 15 Sergio Ramos
• 06 Iniesta
• 08 Xavi
• 14 Alonso
• 16 Busquets
• 07 Villa
• 18 Pedrito

7.18pm: So, the Dutch team first up…

• 01 Stekelenburg
• 02 Van Der Wiel
• 03 Heitinga
• 04 Mathijsen
• 05 Van Bronckhorst (Captain)
• 06 Van Bommel
• 08 De Jong
• 10 Sneijder
• 07 Kuyt
• 09 Van Persie
• 11 Robben

7.15pm: Are you excited? Because I know I am. We’re about to have a new World Champion folks, and they’re going to be from Europe – who’d have thought that a couple of weeks into the tournament? All the team news coming up, plus live coverage of the World Cup final itself. Fasten your seatbelts, this promises to be a cracker…