
Outplayed and outthought by a nimble and assured Spanish team, Ukraine was reduced to 10 men by a red card early in the second half and had little to offer Wednesday, falling, 4-0, on a hot afternoon in the tournament's most lopsided loss yet.
Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko was anonymous. Confounded by a disciplined Spanish offside trap, he scarcely received a ball worth playing the entire game and mustered a single blocked shot at goal.
Spain, a serial World Cup underperformer, appears to have put together a team that could go far. Spain was smooth and inventive throughout, more aggressive than past Spanish teams, and the players repeatedly cut through Ukraine's defense.
In the Brazilian-born Marcos Senna, a relative newcomer to the team, the Spanish have found a true playmaker. One measure of the strength of the squad is that Raúl, a striker for Real Madrid, only entered the game in the 54th minute, by which time the game was in effect over.
The rout began in the 13th minute. Marcos Senna, taking a page from the book of Brazil's Kaká, curled in a beautiful left-footed shot from the edge of the penalty area. Oleksandr Shovkovskiy, the Ukrainian goalkeeper, managed to tip the ball over.
But he could do nothing a few moments later as an inswinging corner from Xavi was headed low into the net from 5 yards by Xabi Alonso.
A crushing second Spanish goal came four minutes later. Defender Andriy Rusol received a yellow card for a foul at the edge of the penalty area. David Villa took the resulting free kick, and his well-struck shot deflected off the top of the Ukrainian wall past Shovkovskiy's flailing left hand into the roof of the net.
The Spanish could have had four goals in the first half alone and added two more in the second half. Since losing in the quarterfinals in a shootout against South Korea in the 2002 World Cup, the Spanish have built a formidable record. They have not been beaten in 22 matches. Their last defeat came in June 2004, against Portugal. Wednesday, they oozed the confidence such a run builds.
Ukraine still has a chance to advance if Coach Oleg Blokhin can sharpen his team's focus