MADRID - SPAIN clinched an improbable, come from behind Davis Cup victory over Argentina on Sunday to cap a historic year of Spanish sporting achievement.

Fernando Verdasco won 6-3, 6-7 (3), 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 against Jose Acasuso at Mar del Plata as Spain rallied from one point down for its third Davis Cup title against the overwhelming favourites, despite losing top-ranked Rafael Nadal to injury before the final.

'These are unforgettable moments,' Nadal, winner of a fourth straight French Open trophy and his first Wimbledon title earlier this year, told Spanish state television.

'We need to stress that they've made history. It's an unforgettable victory. I don't think it's possible to be any happier.'

The 22-year-old Nadal, who dethroned Roger Federer from the No. 1 ranking after a record 237 weeks at the top, also won Olympic gold before helping Spain reach the Davis Cup final with an emphatic 4-1 victory over the United States in the semifinal.

Sadly a knee injury meant Nadal could only enjoy the final on television from his home on Mallorca.

Away from the tennis court, Spain ended a 44-year drought without a major football trophy in June by triumphing at the European Championship.

That 1-0 victory over Germany saw Spain shake off its perennial underachiever tag and surge to the top of FIFA's world rankings.

It also tops its World Cup qualifying group with a perfect record and is looking like one of the favorites for the 2010 World Cup having not lost an international match in over two years.

'What can I say. We've had a sensational year in Spain,' Real Madrid and national team goalkeeper Iker Casillas said.

Although 2007 Tour de France champion Alberto Contador didn't get the chance to defend his crown after switching to the Astana team, nevertheless, another Spaniard succeeded him as Carlos Sastre won cycling's premier event in July.

Still, Contador did manage to become only the fifth cyclist to sweep all three of cycling's major events after winning the Giro d'Italia and the Spanish Vuelta. A feat he accomplished faster than anyone else after taking all three titles within 15 months.

At the Beijing Games, Spain produced its third-best medal haul - 18 - and is confident that its recent sporting successes will strengthen its bid to bring the 2016 Olympics to Madrid.

Even two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso has given Spanish motor sport fans hope that he can fight for the title in 2009 after winning two races at the close of his first season since returning to Renault.

'Before the death of (General Francisco) Franco, we were a poor country, a poorly run country,' Mr Santiago Segurola, the dean of the country's sports writers, told wires agencies in an interview earlier this year.

'Now, there is no country that matches Spain for champions.' -- AP