Originally published at The Crux
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After Spain’s triumph over Argentina in the FIFA World Cup final on Sunday, several of the stars credited the influence of their Catholic faith for the dramatic victory.
Game-winning goal-scorer Ferran Torres, who has suffered heavy criticism for his inconsistency in front of the net in his home country, said his heroics in extra-time were made possible by divine grace.
“Thank God,” Torres said after the final, “he always gives me the strength to keep going, and in the end, as I say, God gives things to those who deserve them most.”
“The goal is the least important thing,” he said.
“Right now all I want is to grab that cup and squeeze it as much as possible because I think it’s the dream of 47 million people who were on the field,” he said, “because I think we deserved it and we gave it our all.”
Shortly before the final, a video was released in which Torres, who plays for FC Barcelona, expanded on the place his faith plays in his life.
“I have a cross and a statue of the Virgin Mary; in the end, I think it’s something that gives me a lot of support,
