So this is what happens when the coming force runs, once again, into its own historically immovable object.
Spain, the pre-tournament favourites for these European Championships, are threatening to take the women’s game to new heights, shattering attendance records in continental and home fixtures, proud owners of a thriving domestic league that has produced a national team of unrivalled technical brilliance, infused chiefly with genius of the (almost) all-conquering Barcelona.