KAZAN, Russia — Fernando Hierro and Carlos Queiroz need no reminders about the hazards of being a soccer coach.

In his 14 years as a key player at Real Madrid, Hierro went through 14 coaching changes, and the final one cost him his spot with the club in 2003 — even though the incoming coach said he lobbied hard to keep Hierro around.

That coach was Queiroz, a velvet-voiced Portuguese native who ended up lasting only one season in the bottom-line world of Real.

On Wednesday night in Kazan, Hierro and Queiroz met again in much more improbable circumstances as Spain defeated Iran, 1-0, to take a share of the lead in Group B with Portugal.