49 min: Xavi tries to pick out Iniesta wandering in the narrow strip of no-man's land between the two banks of four defending the the Portugal penalty area. The pass goes astray and Portugal break, only to see their counter-attack fail due to lack of numbers.

50 min: Sergio Ramos crosses from the right, Portugal clear. Iniesta dinks a ball over the top for Torres to chase, but Coentrao hacks clear. Portugal attack on the break and almost score.

52 min: After breaking down the right with the ball at his feet and Cristiano Ronaldo inside him, Hugo Almeida cuts inside Pique and unleashes a shot. With Carles Puyol aware that Ronaldo is lurking behind him, he sticks out a leg and the ball loops up in the air, over Iker Casillas's head and bounces inches wide of the post. Casillas thought that was heading into his goal - he's not the only one.

54 min: Xavi and Ramos combine down the right wing, but the former's return pass to the latter has too much welly on it and trickles through to Eduardo.

55 min: Spain try to go over the top, with a bomb from deep dropping in towards Torres in the penalty area. Carvalho heads clear.

56 min: Portugal go forward, Meireles pings a cross in towards the Spain goal and Casillas punches clear.

58 min: Portugal substitution: Almeida off, Danny on. Spain substitution: Fernando Torres off, Fernando Llorente on.

59 min: "Portugal was ruled by Spain from 1580 to 1640," writes Conor Dean. "It was called the Iberian Union but it was the sort of 'union' Ireland got roped into
with Great Britain and Portugal had to fight to get its independence back. Which it got - one of the reasons this game is spicier for the Portuguese than Spanish. Which might explain Colin Bolster's girlfriend getting bothered." I reckon the reason's Colin Bolster's girlfriend is getting bothered are more to do with Colin Bolster's many shortcomings than Portugal's time under the heel of Spanish oppression.

61 min: A shocking miss from Fernando Llorente with his first touch. Diving to convert a cross home from five or six yards out, he heads straight at Eduardo when a steer a couple of feet either side of the goalkeeper would almost certainly have resulted in a goal.

GOAL! Spain 1-0 Portugal (Villa 62 ) Spain finally tiki-taka their way through the Portugal defence, with Andres Iniesta, among others, ping-ping-pinging a series of short passes through a thicket of five or six defenders on the edge of the penalty area. Xavi slid the ball out wide to Villa on the left-side of the penalty area. The talismanic striker's first effort was saved by Eduardo, who could only parry the ball into Villa's path. He banged the follow-up in off the underside of the crossbar. New Fifa technology - that stringy series of air-squares hanging from the goal-frame that Eduardo picks the ball out of - suggests the ball has crossed the line.

67 min: Say what you like about the long ball game, but doing a minute-by-minute report on a match involving Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool is a lot easier than writing one on a match involving Spain, Barcelona or Arsenal. I've seen that goal about four times now and I still can't figure out a way to describe it accurately.

69 min: Sergio Ramos drags a shot narrowly wide of the Portugal right upright. Did it take a deflection? It would appear so - corner for Spain, from which nothing comes. Except another corner for Spain, won by David Villa.

71 min: Portugal substitutions: Simao and Pepe off, Pedro Mendes and Liedson on. According to BBC commentator Jonathan Pearce, Ronaldo, who hasn't had a touch yet in this second half, looks across to the bench and gestures as if to say: "What way are we supposed to play now?"

73 min: Xabi Alonso picks up Spain's first yellow card of the competition for a late tackle on Pedro Mendes.

74 min: Llorente, who's big and strong and has been causing Portugal's defenders so many problems they've already ripped one shirt from his back, wins a free-kick in the Portugal left-back position. It's taken quickly and Sergio Ramos finds himself with the ball at his feet and two options: shoot for the near post or dink the ball into Llorente in the middle. He opts for the latter course of action but the ball is cut out by Coentrao.

77 min: Spain go close again. A shot from distance stings the palms of Eduardo, who parries. Carvalho gifts possession to David Villa in the Portugal right-back position and he immediately cuts inside. Frantic, Portugal clear.

78 min: Despite their double-substitution, things haven't improved for Portugal. I don't think Cristiano Ronaldo has touched the ball in this half - he's getting no service and is completely isolated up front.

80 min: Villa gets the ball on the left flank, but is immediately surrounded by three defenders. In the Portugal dug-out, Carlos Queiroz moves Cristiano Ronaldo back to the right wing. "There's been no structure up front for Portugal since Almeida went off," complains BBC match analyst Mark Lawrenson.

82 min: "I've got an easy way for you to describe the goal: 'offside'," writes Dale K Privet. "Interesting how this time we didn't get the replay showing whether it was definitely onside. Sepp obviously had a word after the fiasco in the Mexico game."

83 min: Spain get the ball out to Villa on the left wing again. Ricardo Costa is a study in concentration, staring at the Jabulani as his nemesis jinks this way and that. He eventually sticks his foot in and wins the ball, prompting Villa to fall over and appeal for a free. None is forthcoming and Costa waltzes out of defence to safety.

85 min: Cristiano Ronaldo threatens to throw a strop after not getting a free-kick for being pushed in the chest by Coentrao while contesting a high ball.

86 min: From deep on the left flank, David Villa whips in a cross with vicious dip on it. Llorente gets on the end of it but skims the ball just wide.

88 min: A poor clearance for Busquets drops kindly for Danny, who shoots for goal from the edge of the penalty area. His shot is blocked.

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