Football Club

TEAM NEWS
Spain midfielder Xabi Alonso is a major doubt with a sprained ankle, so Javier Martinez is on standby to replace him. Reserve defender Raul Albiol is definitely out of this match after damaging ankle ligaments during training.

Deco is available again for Portugal after a hip injury, so coach Carlos Queiroz must decide whether to restore him to the starting line-up. Hugo Almeida or Liedson will come back into the team as Danny is expected to miss the game with a badly bruised leg.

One booking from suspension: Almeida, Coentrao, Duda, Mendes, Pepe, Ronaldo, Tiago (Portugal)

MATCH PREVIEW
Two years ago to the day of this match, Spain finally broke their major tournament duck and lifted the European Championship trophy. If they are to go one step further and break their World Cup hoodoo they are going to have to significantly up their performances, starting against their Iberian neighbours Portugal.

Fernando Torres scored the goal in the final in Vienna back in 2008, but his performances in South Africa have been synonymous with that of the rest of the Spanish team. He and many of his much-vaunted colleagues have started the tournament sluggishly and look like they are still recovering from the shock of losing to Switzerland in their opening match.

Portugal have played out two grim goalless draws sandwiched either side of a mauling of North Korea. Coach Carlos Queiroz has opted for a different striking formation in all three of their games so far, but while he ponders how to get goals at one end, he is losing no sleep about a defensive unit that has conceded just once in their last 12 matches.

The Portuguese have only beaten Spain five times in 32 encounters, but perversely have lost this fixture just once since 1958. Like many local derbies, a draw has proved to be a very common result, so penalties could be the only way of separating these neighbours at the Cape Town stadium.

MATCH OFFICIALS
Head-to-head
- They have met 32 times in international football. Portugal have won just five matches, Spain 15 and there have been 12 draws.

- But Portugal won their last meeting 1-0, which came at the Euro 2004 group stages and eliminated Sapin from the competition.

- And Spain have only beaten Portugal once in the ten matches since 1958.

Spain
- They must make history if they are to win the World Cup, as no country has lost its first group match and gone on to lift the trophy.

- David Villa has scored six goals in six starts at the World Cup and is now the all-time top scorer for Spain at the tournament.

- Spain became the first team since Hungary in 1986 not to collect a single card in the group stages of a World Cup tournament. In fact, they have not had a player cautioned in their last six matches since Sergio Ramos was booked against France on 3 March.

Portugal
- Portugal have conceded just one goal in their last 12 internationals.

- Should they get through against Spain, they will set a new unbeaten record for Portugal of 20 games in all competitions.

- They have failed to score in their last two World Cup knockout matches – 0-0 (aet) against England in the quarter-final and a 1-0 defeat to France in the semi-final in 2006.