Paco Alcacer Can Rival Diego Costa as Spain No. 9 for Vicente Del Bosque

In international football, few topics are more regularly discussed than Spain's long-running striker quandary. 

For so long the side's most obvious flaw, La Roja's lack of a potent No. 9 has been a reminder that no outfit is flawless, an issue that has somewhat quelled the potential threat of a team perpetually rolling out the finest midfield in the game. 

Indeed, despite having dominated the global stage between 2008 and 2012, the side Vicente del Bosque inherited from Luis Aragones has rarely been prolific in front of goal, hindered by the absence of a truly lethal frontman. 

Of those who've occupied the position in recent times, the once-barnstorming Fernando Torres has rapidly faded, the brilliant David Villa has retired, Fernando Llorente doesn't fit the mould, Alvaro Negredo has fallen away, Roberto Soldado isn't good enough, Cesc Fabregas has held the false-nine position with limited success and Diego Costa is yet to make an impact in a Spain shirt. 

Aside from Villa, who also played in wider roles, a dependable No. 9 has eluded the Spaniards.

A possible solution, however, emerged at the Estadi Ciutat de Valencia on Monday. In Spain's 5-1 waltz past an inferior Macedonia, the most significant storyline centered on how seamlessly Paco Alcacer appeared to fit into del Bosque's attack, scoring once and registering an assist in his competitive debut for La Roja. 

Alberto Saiz/Associated Press

Most notable was that Alcacer looked particularly comfortable in his tight exchanges with Fabregas, Pedro and David Silva on the fringes of the penalty area. 

An inch-perfect, glancing nod to Silva almost resulted in Spain's third goal just prior to half-time. A similar headed pass created the space for Sergio Busquets to push the hosts to that tally just a minute later. 

In less than hour, the 21-year-old completed 28 touches, per WhoScored.com, finishing with a passing accuracy of 87 percent—a mighty fine number for a player residing in the final third. 

Spain's striking paradox, remember, has always been due to the discomfort of the nation's natural scorers in the team's intricate approach. Perhaps no player has typified that problem more than Costa in the opening phase of his career with La Roja. 

Strong, relentless and a clinical finisher capable of being a one-man counter-attack, the Brazilian-born forward is the prolific No. 9 Spain has craved but cruelly doesn't fit the system—not yet anyway—employed by del Bosque's men. 

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More at home when in space and not inclined to participate in precise passing sequences, successfully harnessing the talents of Costa will require the Spaniards to alter their methods. 

That might not be the case with Alcacer, though, who instantly became a fluid component in the team's Barcelona-esque approach in Valencia on Monday. 

"

Barcelona tried to sign Valencia forward Paco Alcacer (21) in 2011, when he was 17 years old. They offered 3M, buyout clause was 9M. [sport]

— barcastuff (@barcastuff) September 8, 2014"

Alcacer, of course, is still a work in progress, an unrefined and inconsistent striker with little experience in the infancy of his career. 

Just last season, he put together 13 scoreless performances either side of a blistering hat-trick in the Europa League against Basel. 

Evident in his goal against Macedonia, Alcacer possesses the necessary predatory instincts, but he's far from the finished article. 

Such a scope for improvement, however, can only be a positive for Spain. 

Alongside his decorated team-mates in the Estadi Ciutat de Valencia, Alcacer wasn't at all overawed. In the Spaniards' world-famous approach, he looked surprisingly at ease. 

While development must still be completed in all facets of his game, the way the debutant blended with La Roja's system will have excited del Bosque, possibly taking Spain one step closer to the solution to their striking paradox. 

Alberto Saiz/Associated Press

Two years out from their European championship defence and with an entire qualification campaign still remaining, that's a tantalising prospect for Spain as they embark on the repair effort in the wake of their brutal World Cup experience. 

Not only does del Bosque have considerable time to integrate Costa; he suddenly owns an obvious challenger to that troublesome No. 9 position. 

"This team has lots of quality and it was only a question of time, that we would play well and score goals. There's great attacking players in this team and they've demonstrated that again," Alcacer said after the game, per Inside Spanish Football. 

He wasn't talking about himself, but others might now start doing that for him.