DALLAS, United States, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Substitute Mikel Merino scored in stoppage time as Spain edged Portugal 1-0 in a tense Iberian derby on Monday to reach the FIFA World Cup quarterfinals, ending Cristiano Ronaldo's bid to lift football's biggest trophy.
In front of a sellout crowd of 70,649 at Dallas Stadium, reigning European champion Spain was held to a goalless first half, with both teams creating clear chances but failing to find the breakthrough.
Portugal came closest to opening the scoring in the 37th minute. Pedro Neto's cross from the right found Joao Felix at the far post after Unai Simon misjudged the flight of the ball. Felix headed it back across goal for Ronaldo, whose acrobatic effort while falling was saved by the recovering Spain goalkeeper.
Four minutes later, Nuno Mendes came within inches of giving Portugal the lead when his deflected left-footed strike crashed off the crossbar before Spain cleared the danger.
With Spanish horns echoing around the stadium, Spain finally broke the deadlock in the first minute of stoppage time. Rodri laid the ball off to Ferran Torres, who slipped Merino through on goal. The midfielder kept his composure and fired a low left-footed shot into the bottom-left corner beyond Diogo Costa.
Portugal nearly forced extra time in the seventh minute of stoppage time when Francisco Conceicao delivered a cross from the right, but Bernardo Silva's header sailed just centimeters over the crossbar.
The match marked the third World Cup meeting between the Iberian rivals. Spain won their previous knockout encounter 1-0 on the way to lifting the trophy in 2010, while Ronaldo scored a memorable hat-trick in a 3-3 group-stage draw at Russia 2018.
Spain, who have yet to concede a goal at the tournament, will face either co-host the United States or Belgium in the quarterfinal in Seattle on July 10. The two teams meet later on Monday to determine Spain's next opponent.
