I watched the second leg of this World Cup qualifying play-off tonight. Spain maintained their record of never losing under Luis Aragones. Good, until you consider this was their sixth draw in the past twelve games - the match ending 1-1.
Hat-trick hero from the first leg Luis Garcia didn't start, due to a minor injury. After putting in an excellent performance following his first start for his country, at the weekend, it's a shame the forward was missing from the line-up.
There was Liverpool interest, however, with Xabi Alonso starting the game. Fernando Morientes came on in the second half, setting up David Villa, who duly secured the equaliser.
Spain had it all their own way in the first half, although Fernando Torres and Raul were unable to convert their chances. Slovakia played with a lot of men behind the ball, but the fact that they didn't press at all, and seemed happy for Spain to retain possession was surprising.
One player who particularly stood out for me was Spain's Antonio Lopez. Playing at left back in Aragones' 4-2-3-1 system, the Sevilla midfielder performed well - tackling hard when necessary and getting forward a lot.
It seemed as if Slovakia had given up on the small chance of qualifying after an uninspiring first half. However, after a half time team talk they came out firing on all cylinders. Substitute Filip Holosko wasted no time in finding the back of the net.
Holosko's goal wasn't to inspire a dramatic comeback, though. Villa's consolation late in the game secured a draw on the night, with Spain having now booked their place in Germany, next year.