Casillas: Rivalry would have been a problem

Iker Casillas revealed the Barcelona-Real Madrid divide would have caused problems for Spain if the European Championship had been held last year.

It has been claimed that several members of the Spanish national team do not see eye to eye, but while Casillas said that is not true now, he conceded it was only a year ago.

“If the Euros had been in 2011, it (the Clasico rivalry) would have been a problem, but now we have a laugh about it,” the Spain captain told Marca.

“This tension is now gone and I think we should look on the bright side: we have moved on.”

Spain goes into Euro 2012 as the reigning world and European champions, however Casillas acknowledges that history counts for nothing when it comes to major international tournaments.

“We know that the past is worthless,” he said. “We have a good record but we cannot survive on our memories. We want to do well and continue winning.”

Spain kick off their campaign against Italy on Sunday, who have been written off by a number of pundits following their dismal 3-0 defeat to Russia in their final warm-up fixture.

Nonetheless, Casillas remains very wary of the threat posed by Cesare Prandelli’s team.

“I’ve seen videos of Italy and I think they are a great team,” the Madrid shot-stopper declared. “They have many interesting players and they have been renovated.

“They have both veterans and hopeful youngsters, with a lot of players from Juventus. I have maximum respect for them.”