A football match, much more than that but only that. Spain, the players who had to stop being one to be the flag of something much more important, are the masters of this game, of the result and of the discourse. Led by Alexia Putellas, they were able, against all odds, to once again demonstrate that on the grass they are the best in the world.. They disarmed Sweden by cornering them, overcoming their blows and pushing them to the limit to win the most difficult match of their lives in added time and a penalty.. [Narrative and statistics]

For a few minutes at the Gamla Ullevi in Göteborg, nothing mattered other than 22 footballers sending a message to the world: #It'sOver. A cry that the world champions have been singing for a month, which has empowered women, has been applauded by men and has provoked deep reflections that go beyond what happens in the 90 minutes that the ball rolls. That's why at the beginning it didn't matter that the packed stands were dyed yellow, that a title was at stake, the Paris Games and even the European Championship in Switzerland.. Not even that Spain had only been able to beat Sweden in 13 years on the day when, before everything imploded, they were left out of the World Cup final.. The star was worn on the chest by the team that was deprived of its right to euphoria. Now they claim it.

Montse Tomé's first decision in her debut was already a wink: return the captaincy to the sovereignty of the locker room. Although UEFA announced that Alexia Putellas would wear the armband that was taken from her, Irene Paredes did so, a natural leadership that she will exercise alongside Alexia herself, Aitana Bonmatí and Mariona Caldentey, conscious of leaving a legacy that paves the way for generations.

Spain slows down the pace

In Göteborg, for the first time in a long time, they once again felt like only athletes. Spain was not bothered by the grotesque week and started the game with personality, initiative and wanting to intimidate the number 1 team in the world ranking, a tough nut.. This Nations League leaves no room for error: you have to be first in the group to go to Paris. They imposed a high pace that even Putellas called for lowering so as not to pay dearly after barely having trained. He needed a little break to meet Bonmatí, hold the ball and prevent the Swedes from running. The recoveries of an incombustible Mariona gave him, testing Musovic with the blows of Ona Batlle and Bonmatí herself. But then, the locals were activated and each mistake planted them in the Cata Coll area. Angeldal missed the first shot, but from a set piece, the Swedish team's infallible weapon, the goal came.. Eriksson left the defense to rise and finish a corner alone. Spain paid for the imbalance of a change of coaching staff and a week of more conclaves than grass. The blow could have made Asllani more painful.

Spain did not sink. I didn't have to. The Swedes had found a way to get ahead, but Peter Gerhardsson was not calm on his bench. The Spanish football flowed brilliantly, kneading the ball, with Alexia setting the tempo, dodging with class the impetus of the Swedes, with the relief of Bonmatí and the strength of Mariona to attract rivals. The tie was born from their escape. He looked into the area to find Athenea, who hit him to surprise Musovic, who lost the ball. The heartfelt hug with Alexia at the celebration was another message that the game left. The result was equal again. Not the game. There the Spanish were the dominators.

Nothing changed after the break. Athenea scampered into the area but crossed her shot too far. Lucía tried it, with her hand sore from a stomp, and even Aitana. Musovic had to work hard, saving another shot from Athenea and the rebound from Mariona. What he couldn't stop was Eva Navarro's left-footed shot into the squad, who had just entered the field. The match was leaning towards Spain, although in a counter-attack Hurtig balanced it again. In the last minute, Eva Navarro missed the Vaseline that touched the crossbar and in added time, Ilestedt caught Amaiur in the area. Penalty and expulsion. Mariona, from the penalty spot, did not waste a goal for history. Another one.

At some point, Chinanu Onuaku will be fouled and free throws will be awarded by the referees.. It will happen this Sunday against Barça at the Palau Blaugrana, the first ACB match, and if not in the following Joventut matches this season. Onuaku, Penya's star signing, a 2.08 meter American power forward, will stand on the line, look at the rim and oh, surprise! “What does he do?” fans will ask.. “Pull the spoon!” they will exclaim later. In fact, Onuaku is destined to be one of the sensations of this beginning of the course due to his unique style from 4.60 meters: he throws from the bottom up, 'underhand', a technique that has not been seen for decades.

Because? I decided to change my technique my second year of college [at the Louisville Cardinals].. It wasn't a long process, really, almost overnight.. In my first year my free throw percentage had been a disaster [46.7%] and during the summer, my coach, Rick Pitino, proposed the change.. He showed me videos of Rick Barry, a player who pitched like that in the 70s, I tried him and discovered that I scored more, that I did better. My second season was already better [58.9%].

At the Palau Olímpic in Badalona, Onuaku attends to EL MUNDO without complexes. At 26 years old, after traveling around South Korea, Croatia, Israel and Italy, he knows that some fans recognize him for the way he shoots free throws, but he hardly cares, he only asks not to pose for the photographer by throwing a spoon.. “People know me from this release, I know. It's not something I'm looking for.. I neither like nor dislike. “It's a technique like any other,” he comments, although he acknowledges that on occasions he has tried to return to the most common technique..

Onuaku, at the university. EM

“This summer I was playing The Tournament in the United States [a summer competition with many ex-NBA] and I shot like the rest, but the public asked me to use the 'underhand' and I did. Why not? In ACB I will shoot from the bottom up because that is what gives me a better percentage,” Onuaku analyzes with free throws still a weak point.. Despite his change in technique and his improvement, last year in the Eurocup, with Hapoel Tel Aviv, he achieved a 62.8% success rate, far from the 75% or even the 80% required of a player of his weight..

The life of a globetrotter

Because beyond his 'spoons', Onuaku has made a name for himself in Europe with his aggressiveness near the rim and his strength in defense. Drafted at number 37 in 2016 by the Houston Rockets, he played six games in the NBA – where he also pitched low – before beginning a somewhat strange journey around the world.. Because to begin with he had no place in Europe and had to go to Wonju DB Promy in Busan, South Korea. And because it took years and a lot of work to stand out in European competition.

DAVID RAMÍREZ / ARABA

Last year, in Israel, he was MVP of the national league and led his team to the quarterfinals of the Eurocup to end up signing for his executioner in that tournament, Joventut. “I still think I can return to the NBA. It has been my dream since I was a child and I believe it is possible.. I have improved a lot, I am focused on work and I am still on the path, although it is being long. “I'm enjoying basketball, but as a professional there is no other place like the NBA,” admits Onuaku, who has recently become the father of a girl.

What is the life of an American player in Europe like? It is comfortable because the clubs treat you well, they help you get situated, but at the same time it is very hard because of the distance from your family. There are players who live with their partners and children, but it is very complicated: too many trips, too many moves between countries. For me it is the most difficult. My daughter is in the United States and I can't be with her. I would like nothing more than to be a present father, take her to school, make her food, but I have to work. I'm waiting for February to arrive and there will be a FIBA break so I can go see it.

Of Nigerian parents who emigrated to the outskirts of Washington before he was born, little brother of Arianze Onuaku, formerly of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Orlando Magic, Chinanu Onuaku was one of the best players in his country in high school to the point of being called up by the Yankee team for the 2015 U19 World Cup alongside current stars like Jalen Brunson and Jayson Tatum. In college, with the Louisville Cardinals, he didn't quite explode, but he discovered a technique for shooting free throws that this year in the ACB League will cause a sensation. In Joventut's matches this season he will stand on the line, look at the rim and, oh, surprise! What are you doing? Throw a spoon!

“How can it be that Juan Núñez, one of the few players for whom a fan would pay a ticket, is not in the ACB?”. The question, asked on air by a reputed agent who is not that of the former Madrid player, reveals one of the new dramas of the Endesa League that starts this Saturday. If the flight of talent was already a reality for some time, now even the promising ones are fleeing, before even exploring the possibility of finding a place in the national competition.

This was the case of Núñez and it is that of Aday Mara, who will train at UCLA after his debut last year in Zaragoza. Izan Almansa or Baba Miller, junior world champions, were not even seen in ACB, nor were Santi Aldama, the pioneer. Usman Garuba did not last very long and has chosen to continue pursuing his NBA options rather than return. All of them prefer the US over domestic uncertainties. And the ACB continues in the line of recent years: not even 30% of the players who start today are national, about 68 of the 230 who start in the 18 squads (or in other words, 70% are foreigners ). Sergio Scariolo denounced that of the 12 of the team that played in the recent World Cup, only Joel Parra was a starter in his team, Joventut (this year he is one of the star signings of Roger Grimau's Barça). Previously, the coach of the current European champion (and number two in the FIBA ranking) had publicly shown his concern because “Spain is the country in the world whose League has the fewest national players.”. “That makes the road very difficult.”

There is no competition in Europe with such figures and not even the quota regulations (four born or trained for at least three years in Spain per squad) prevent cases like that of UCAM Murcia: none of its 13 players is Spanish (Baskonia follows with one out of 12), there are 10 different nationalities and up to three Swedes. «We continue badly, we get tired of preaching in the desert. This percentage is very low. We must give more opportunities to young people, because there are many veterans who will soon retire and there is no replacement,” protests Alfonso Reyes, president of the players' union (ABP).

Joel Parra, during the presentation of the Endesa League. FERNANDO VILLAR EFE

Significant, as usual, is the case of Chumi Ortega, one of the few new faces from home in the Endesa League. He already made his debut at the age of 19, a youth player, precisely in Murcia, “minutes of garbage”, and had to take steps back. After years of fighting in the shadow of the LEB, he scored 32 points in the final match for the promotion of Zunder Palencia in June. Now at 26 he gets the opportunity that is denied to so many.. «It is a shame that in the 'Spanish' league there are so few Spaniards. This is a business and all clubs try to find the best to win, but they should look more at the Spanish market. “I think there is a lot of value and it is not appreciated,” he denounces, a speaker for peers. And he reasons, he who experienced it recently. «There are clubs that instead of giving the opportunity to a Spanish player, they take the same prototype but from abroad. And since he comes from a country whose last name ends in vic… They don't call Ortega, they prefer Ortegovic. It is a pity. It demotivates us Spanish players. If it is already difficult to reach the ACB… Luckily I have achieved it through promotions, but there are people in LEB Oro who have the level but not the opportunity,” says the forward.

Curiously, the two squads with the most nationals are those of Barcelona and Real Madrid (six out of 14 each). He agrees that they are the ones who have the least trouble achieving their goals: they have won seven of the last 10 finals. So, to the lack of identification that causes so much detachment in the fan, is added the lack of sporting incentives, therefore, for someone who is not white or Barcelona to win a national title, years have to pass.. This is what happened to Unicaja, brand new and surprising winner of the Copa del Rey in Badalona, 14 years after Baskonia.

The market has not brought too many 'stars' this summer either. Two returns could head the poster, that of Facundo Campazzo to Madrid and that of Willy Hernangómez, a morbid Barça player. And Jabari Parker and Jahlil Okafor (Barça and Zaragoza), boys predestined to be stars in the NBA (number 2 and 3 in their drafts, respectively) draw attention with an asterisk. On the other hand, some of the tournament's biggest draws escaped to other European leagues, starting with Niko Mirotic (Milan). But also Cory Higgins (like the Montenegrin, fired by Barça, he is still without a team after his injury), sensations from last year like Darius Thompson (from Baskonia to Efes) or Kyle Guy (from Joventut to Panathinaikos, where he will be a teammate of Juancho Hernangómez ) and classics that the fan gets hooked on like Jasiel Rivero (Maccabi) or Bojan Dubljevic (Zenit)… And even claims on the bench like Sarunas Jasikevicius are no longer there.

Alexia Putellas was denied everything by football when her knee failed that summer of 2022 and, since then, she has been able to enjoy little, at least with the national team.. At Gamla Ullevi she shook off all the demons, those of the battle for physical recovery and the one she had to fight on behalf of all the players, starting with her friend Jenni Hermoso. Putellas, tired and mentally exhausted after a chaotic month, appeared against Sweden to lead Spain, dominate the game, even give the Swedes a pass and show that this team has a star, on the Catalan's chest and boots.

She should have worn the captain's armband, as UEFA reported, but performed the role without it. “She was the most voted in the locker room, but you know how she is and she told me to take it,” revealed Irene Paredes.. Alexia doesn't need that symbol. She took care of the football, the previous banner, which she displayed, and even hugging Athenea del Castillo after the first goal, a symbol of unity..

«Today I saw a different Alexia, she enjoyed. She is a 10 professional and, as soon as she has been able to focus on football, she has shown everything she gives us.”. These are the praises that Montse Tomé dedicated to him. The coach debuted with a victory, as unexpected as it was deserved. He hugged before and after the game with his entire staff. They know they take air. «I had a lot of confidence in myself. I just needed them to let me work. I didn't feel pressure, but rather the desire to start doing what we want: training and thinking about football.. Above all, I'm happy for them,” she said before remembering that she had asked the players several times during the match about their physical condition and clarifying that she is not Jorge Vilda, something that was visualized with the commitment to Laia Aleixandri as center back and as partner of Irene Paredes.

For the veteran player, the victory only brought out what they are. «It was not the best moment nor are we in the best conditions, but jumping onto the pitch is what frees us. “It's what we're here for and what we know how to do best, so we've enjoyed it,” said the veteran Barça centre-back, very happy with the three points that put them at the head of a group where they must finish first to dream of being Olympic.

Mariona's penalty pushes them. «On a mental level we were exhausted, but we played the game well. We have even talked about it being one of our best matches.. Playing like this as a team is a great satisfaction after the week we've had,” said the Mallorcan, not without humor.. «We suffered because we conceded in the 90th minute and we won at the last moment. “Before these things used to happen to us the other way around.”

This victory not only has a sporting meaning, which puts Spain at an advantage, but also a social one. “There may be people wanting us to lose, but there are many more who support us,” he warned. In Córdoba you will notice it, although yesterday also despite being the rival team. «We have been applauded when we went out to warm up and we have seen many banners. It is increasingly clear that, although the Swedes have been very sensitive and have supported us, everyone has understood that our fight is everyone's,” Paredes recalled.

Three of them will have to remember it at the National Court, where they will appear as witnesses in the case being pursued against former president Luis Rubiales for the alleged abuse of Jenni Hermoso in the World Cup final.

The players from Spain and Sweden knew they were the center of attention and did not hesitate to take advantage of it to send a double message.

To the world, with a pose united behind a banner that read “#It's Over. Our fight is the global fight”. To Jenni Hermoso the other, posing with her fist clenched, empowered, with a tape as a bracelet on her wrist on which each one wrote 'It's over' next to a 10, the number that the Vallecana wore in the World Cup.

The internationals respected all the protocol acts required by UEFA, serious in the anthems, with the exchange of pennants, but when it was time to pose, the Spanish, who had already raised their voices, showed their wrists remembering who was missing.. It was then when Alexia, who did not serve as captain even though she appeared that way in the official lineups, looked for the banner, displayed it and the Swedes hugged each other.

The starting eleven of the Spanish soccer team poses with a bracelet that reads “It's over.” J.. C. CÁRDENAS EFE

There were not only gestures on the grass. The stands also responded. Since Spain got off the bus upon arrival at Gamla Ullevi received the respect of the Swedish fans with applause and shouts of encouragement. In the entertainment area of the stadium, home of the Swedish women's team and full for its debut in the Nations League, two banners could also be read. One with the motto that for football is equivalent to #MeToo: “It's over” and another with a meaning “With you.”. Jenny and La Roja” and a Swedish flag.

Although the ball once again took center stage, no one forgets what the world champions have experienced in this month that should have been one of continuous celebration.