Unai Simon has gone from hero to villain in the space of a week according to Diario AS. The Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper made a glaring error for La Roja against Croatia on Monday, but recovered to deliver a sober performance thereafter. Then, on Friday evening against Switzerland, Simon saved two penalties in the shootout, following in the footsteps of Iker Casillas, who famously stopped two against Italy back in 2008.
Spain, of course, were imperious between 2008 and 2012, winning Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012. Casillas was pivotal in these triumphs; always delivering in penalty shootouts. His first significant stop in Spanish colours was against the Republic of Ireland in the 2002 World Cup, but his most famous one was against Oscar Cardozo of Paraguay in 2010. At Euro 2012, he was key in stopping Portugal in the semi-final.
Simon, despite not being the undisputed first-choice heading into the tournament, has performed well. The Basque is still young, and clearly has the confidence of Luis Enrique over David de Gea and Robert Sanchez, number two and three in the squad at Euro 2020. Maybe his true Casillas moment is on the horizon.
