Portugal vs Spain: 3 things that went wrong for Spain

WHAT A GAME! Portugal and Spain played out one of the best games in World Cup history and as the two European heavyweights went head-to-head in all departments and the end result was a spectacular one for the neutrals.

Cristiano Ronaldo ran the show for Portugal while Spain took time to get into the groove. The Spaniards did well to come from behind twice but were unable to stop the Real Madrid superstar from taking a point from the game for Portugal.

Andres Iniesta showed that age is just a number and that he is still one of the best in the world right now. The Barcelona legend was picking out passes and running past Portuguese defenders with ease before he was taken off for Thiago Alcantara.

Without further ado, here are three things that went wrong for Spain tonight vs Portugal:

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#3 De Gea's blunder

David de Gea is arguably the best goalkeeper in the world right now. The Manchester United man has been sensational for the last 3-4 seasons and has stunned everyone with his saves.

Tonight, however, was a night to forget for him. Cristiano Ronaldo had his number and there was nothing De Gea could do to stop the Portuguese superstar from scoring. It all started with the penalty in the 4th minute and ended with the free kick in the 88th minute.

Ronaldo sent De Gea the wrong way to hand Portugal the lead early in the game and then left the goalkeeper rooted to his spot in the final minutes of the game to level things up. But these two incidents are not the going to be remembered for long.

De Gea's howler in the 44th minutes is what people will be talking about for years to come. Ronaldo drilled in a powerful low shot straight at the goalkeeper but the ever so reliable one between the posts, let it slip through his hands and squeeze into the goal.

This gave Portugal the lead against the run of play and also put them in the driver's seat at the end of the first half. Had it not been for this mistake, things might have been different in the second half.

#2 Changing Costa for Aspas

Costa was superb on the night

With 2 goals already under his belt, Diego Costa was proving to be a nightmare for Jose Fonte and Pepe. The Brazil-born striker was running rings around them and sending them back to Portugal with his movement.

In the 77th minute, when Spain were leading 3-2, Fernando Hierro decided to take off the Atletico Madrid star for Iago Aspas. The change proved to be a crucial one as Spain did not have a proper attack at all after that.

They were getting the ball into the Portuguese half but were unable to do anything with it. They were getting bullied off the ball and Aspas was in Fonte's pocket. The inability of keeping the ball up front for long cost them dearly as Portugal went on a wave of attacks and scored from the freekick they got.

#1 Koke goes missing

Koke needs to up his game to retain his starting spot

Yes, Koke started the game for Spain today. If you are surprised and are going to check the line up again to find out if it's true, here's the link to it.

The Atletico Madrid star started in the midfield alongside Busquets and Iniesta but was unable to do anything in the game. He was hardly on the all and was kept quiet by William Carvalho throughout the game.

The midfielder was surprisingly not taken off by Fernando Hierro and that gave Portugal more freedom in the midfield. Koke's unavailability to help Busquets put more pressure on the Barcelona man and he was not able to have the influence on the game like he usually does.

Koke was not available while defending nor was he creating chances or making important runs in the attack. It was one of his worst performances ever but knowing him, he'll bounce back and show everyone what he really is in the next game.