It was once again left to David Villa to turn the tide in favour of the Spain as his strike sent the Euro Champions into the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup 2010.
In a gripping and eventful quarter-final encounter played at the Ellis Park, Johannesburg , Paraguay almost stunned the Spaniards in the opening first 45 minutes of the game , while on the other hand, the La Furia Roja failed to leave up to their own standards and were lucky to walk away with a hard fought victory.
It was Villa fifth goal of the tournament that not only saved the day for Vicente del Bosque coached side but also made him the leading goal scorer of the FIFA World Cup 2010.
After a pale first half, the best moment of the match came in 58th minute when Paraguay striker Oscar Cardozo was brought down by Spanish defender Gerrad Pique inside the box resulting in a penalty in favour of the South Americans.
On the resultant spot-kick , the striker who made history by helping Paraguay to reach their first ever quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup failed to convert the penalty and could only manage to find Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas gloves. The action was then, shifted to the other side of the pitch as a minute later, Villa was pulled down by Antolín Alcaraz inside the area.
Alfonso first kick did manage to beat the Paraguayan goalkeeper Villar, but after the Spanish players were found inside the box before the spot-kick was taken, the centre referee ordered for a retake. Alfonso, who might have emerged as the Hero for the Spaniards failed to convert the spot-kick as the scoreline remained 0-0.
Spain charismatic midfielder Andres Iniesta then paved the way for the winning goal as he ripped apart the Paraguay defence before El Gauaje right footer hit the woodwork and rolled inside in the 83rd minute.
The architect behind the entire set up was the Barcelona midfielder , who essayed a pass to incoming Pedro ,Pedro strike hit the woodwork and fortunately for Spain , Villa was there to do the rest as Spain reached semi-finals of the  World Cup after 1950.
Another classic tie awaits on July 7, when power packed Germany will take on the Euro Champions Spain in the second semi-finals of the La Copa Mundial.