The eyes of the football world will be on Dallas on Monday evening as one of the marquee match-ups of this or any World Cup pits European powerhouses Spain and Portugal together.The Iberian neighbours have been going at it for more than a century, meeting 43 times, including several in major tournaments, but this might just be the biggest of the lot, with a place in the quarterfinals at stake. Cristiano Ronaldo with coach Roberto Martinez after being substituted [Mike Segaar/Reuters]Will Ronaldo start against Spain, and does he deserve to?Forget hydration breaks, VAR and the Golden Boot race, perhaps the biggest talking point of the World Cup so far is Cristiano Ronaldo’s involvement in the Portugal side.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThe 41-year-old came under the spotlight in the opening Group K match against DR Congo, playing every minute of a 1-1 draw, but spurning good opportunities to win the game.He answered the critics with a more accomplished display against Uzbekistan, scoring twice before the break to become the first man to register goals at six World Cups, but he might have added more in a 5-0 win in which he played the full game.After declaring ‘I’m back’ on social media after the game, Ronaldo was on the periphery as he played the full 90 minutes of the goalless draw against Colombia, which saw Portugal finish as runners-up in the group.There were flashes of the old CR7 in the chaotic win over Croatia which booked their last 16 place, seeing a fine dinked finish after some nice control disallowed for a marginal offside, then equalised f …
