“You have to know how to win and you have to know how to lose”
Nearly two months have passed since Spain beat Argentina to lift the trophy (1-0 after extra time). Fabian Ruiz, though, still hasn’t swallowed what happened after the final whistle. Speaking to The Athletic, the Paris Saint-Germain midfielder looked back on the ugly scenes that spoiled the end of the match.
His point isn’t bitterness. It’s about setting the right example. “It’s a moment everyone saw and nobody wants to see. There are young kids watching football, and we shouldn’t be showing them that as an example,” he said. Then he summed it up neatly: “You have to know how to win and you have to know how to lose.”
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Ten matches for Paredes, seven for Molina
FIFA did not let it slide. Leandro Paredes, one of the main figures involved, was handed a 10-match suspension. Nahuel Molina got seven. Roberto Ayala, a member of the Argentina staff involved in the violence, was banned for three games.
For the former PSG midfielder, who also played for Juventus and AS Roma, the punishment is a hefty one. Ten international matches out of action can easily amount to more than a year for a team that only plays a handful of competitive games each season.
Fabian Ruiz would rather focus on something else from that night. “We always try to set a good example because everyone watches football, from the youngest to the oldest. I hope that moment will be forgotten and that people will remember our celebrations, which were unforgettable.”
Sixteen years after South Africa
Spain claimed their second world title, 16 years after the one they won in South Africa. A generation that completed the Euro-World Cup double and now counts Fabian Ruiz among its key men.
But that finish still lingers. Two months on, it still hangs over a final Spain would rather be remembered for in a very different way.
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