SPAIN

Spain World Cup record: 1934 QF, 1950 4th, 1962 1st rd, 1966 1st rd, 1978 1st rd, 1982 2nd rd, 1986 QF, 1990 2nd rd, 1994 QF, 1998 1st rd, 2002 QF, 2006 2nd rd.

How Spain qualified for World Cup 2010: European group 5 winners

The Coach: Vicente del Bosque (Spaniard, 58). Appointed: June 2008. WC experience: Player: None. Coach: None.

The former Real Madrid trainer substituted Luis Aragonés following Spain’s achievement in Euro 2008.

The Country: Spain carried on their achievement in the Euro 2008 finals by walking through the World Cup qualifiers. They were able to match the feats of England and Holland, qualifying for the 2010 finals with two qualifying group matches to spare thanks to a workmanlike 3-0 defeat of Estonia in Merida.

Cesc Fabregas, Santi Cazorla and Juan Mata got the goals to make it eight straight victories for the European champions, with Bosnia-Herzegovina's 1-1 tie with Turkey ensuring their smooth progress to the finals for the ninth straight time. Arsenal’s Fabregas said: "This goal is very important for me, especially for the confidence it gives me. It's a pleasure to play with these players and in front of these fans. Eight wins out of eight, not many countries can say that."

But much will depend on the fitness of Fernando Torres. The striker is in remarkable form but an upsetting injury threatens to spoil both his season and Liverpool’s campaign; del Bosque will be keen that Torres recover from his problems well in advance of the finals, where Spain are real favourites to win the tournament for the first time.