MADRID, June 24 (Xinhua) -- The Spanish football team hard a bumpy landing to round off their disappointing campaign in the World Cup finals when their aircraft was hit by lightning on its approach to Madrid's Adolfo Suarez-Barajas airport on Tuesday.
The Spanish flew back home shortly after their 3-0 win against Australia which closed their World Cup campaign on a more positive note after a 5-1 thrashing to Holland and a 2-0 defeat to Chile saw the defending Champions fall at the first hurdle of their title defense.
The lightning hit the right wing of the plane flying the majority of the squad back home causing a loud noise, but no damage to the aircraft which landed without incident.
Three members of the squad: Diego Costa, Gerard Pique and Cesc Fabrigas, who recently announced his signing for Chelsea, remained in Brazil to begin their summer holidays.
Meanwhile around two hundred fans who had gathered in the arrivals hall of the airport to welcome the players back were disappointed as the squad left by a different door and got straight on the team bus without passing through arrivals and seeing those who had come to give their support.
Andres Iniesta did make his feelings over Spain's premature return home felt with a message on his social networking website in which he said: "there is a great disappointment to come home so soon. We had high hopes of having a good World Cup and that hasn't happened. I apologize to all of you and assure you we will work hard to put the national team back up where it belongs."