When was the last time Portugal and Spain played in the World Cup?

But before today’s blockbuster matchup, do you remember the last time these two legends met in the World Cup?

The last meeting between the two teams took place at the 2018 World Cup on 15 June at the Fish Olympic Stadium in Sochi, Russia. The match was one for the ages, perhaps going down as one of the greatest group stage games in World Cup history. It was a game in which Portugal’s star player Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick as he became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in the World Cup at the time.

Portugal lined up in a classic 4-4-2 formation under Fernando Santos with striker Ronaldo and the late Andre Silva at the helm. Spain, managed by Fernando Hierro, played in their traditional 4-3-3 shape, focusing mainly on creating short passing combinations to launch attacks from the left.

Portugal started the game by sticking to their game plan and immediately reaped the rewards in the opening moments. In the 3rd minute, Ronaldo created a one-on-one situation with right back Nacho on the left wing and deftly challenged his Real Madrid teammate inside the box. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner stepped up to take the penalty and calmly slotted the ball past Manchester United’s David de Gea in the 4th minute.

Spain responded by maintaining possession, essentially with the presence of Koke, Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta in midfield. Their composure ran out in the 24th minute when Diego Costa took a long ball from behind and physically outpaced Pepe’s challenge on the edge of the penalty box, beating three Portuguese defenders before drilling a low shot into the bottom left corner.

Spain controlled play for the better part of the first half before Portugal took the lead before the break as Ronaldo unleashed a sharp ground drive with his weaker foot from the edge of the box where De Gea slipped the ball through his gloves to give Portugal a 2-1 lead at halftime.

The 2010 World Cup winners came back after the break with a much improved tactical approach and completely changed the game in 3 fantastic minutes. Diego Costa equalized in the 55th minute thanks to a set-piece routine by David Silva and Sergio Busquets. Moments later, with 58 minutes on the clock, Nacho from outside the penalty area hit a clean half-volley as the ball hit the inside of the left post and into the net for 3-2.

However, in the 88th minute, with the game close to a Spain victory, Ronaldo drew a foul from Gerard Pique outside the Spanish penalty area. Ronaldo stepped up and hit a gem of a free-kick that curled cleanly over the wall and dipped sharply into the top right corner, leaving De Gea with no choice but to stand still. The score was tied again at 3-3 and ended with the same scoreline.

Before this thrilling encounter, the two sides had met in the 2010 World Cup, Spain’s only winning edition, when David Villa’s brilliant goal saw them come out on top with a 1-0 win in the round of 16.

Portugal vs Spain head to head

The head-to-head record between the two shows an incredibly close contest each time, with the last four meetings being draws.

Portugal v Spain: Last five meetings