The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was once again in the thick of action as Spain beat Iran by a solitary goal. Costa scored in the 54th minute for La Roja to give the 2010 world champions the lead. Iran looked to have equalised in the 62nd minute when Ezatolahi beat De Gea, but saw the goal ruled out after it was reviewed by VAR. Replays showed that Ezatolahi was in an offside position when the ball was played to him. Iran did come close to scoring the equaliser on at least a couple of more occasions, but Spain managed to hang on to their slender lead.
Spain, expectedly, dominated proceedings right from the word go while Iran were dogged in their defence. It wasn’t surprising for a team that conceded only 11 goals in 25 matches in the qualifying campaign. True to their nature, Iran came to play with one mission—not to let Spain score. It was the same tactic they had used against Argentina in the previous World Cup, before Messi broke the deadlock then. Spain were visibly frustrated. Both teams had set up camp in the Iranian half of the pitch. Spain were looking to build up play, while Iran were kicking away every ball that they got in their half. In fact, the only time Iran looked out of place was on the rare occasions that they moved forward.
It was the first ever meeting between the two sides. While Iran have never beaten a European nation at the World Cup, Spain have never been beaten by an Asian country either. They did, however, lose to Korea during one of the draws. The first half was dud as far as any excitement was concerned. It was a contest between playmaking and stubborn defending. Iran were more interested in just kicking the ball away rather than actually make any meaningful attempt at scoring.
The first half should have served as a lesson to all the underdogs on how to contain the heavyweights. Spain started the second half with more intent. They looked to break down the Iranian back line that kept its shape with unerring perfection in the first half. Spain’s first clear chance came in the 50th minute, when Busquets hammered a shot on goal, but it was punched away by Beiranvand. The ball fell for Vasquez on the rebound but Beiranvand was quick to latch on to the loose ball. Costa broke the deadlock in the 54th minute, when Ramin’s attempt at clearing the ball ricocheted off Costa and into the back of the net. Iran had spent the entire game trying to clear any ball that made its way to the penalty box. Irony smiled as a similar clearance had their doom written all over it. Iran almost pulled it back when Ezatolahi scored in the 63rd minute. The Iranians were away celebrating, before the goal was ruled out by VAR for offside. It was the first time a goal was disallowed by VAR in the World Cup.
After the initial scare from the Iranian goal that was ruled out, Spain got back into the game dominating possession. La Roja came dangerously close to scoring yet again in the 70th minute, when Isco’s low, short corner found Silva who turned the ball back to Ramos who took a shot at goal. The shot was blocked on the line. Pique tried to turn it in but found a slew of bodies thrown in front of it. Iran had literally put enough bodies on the line to deny the ball going through. Koke replaced Iniesta in the 71st minute, while Asensio was brought on for Lucas Vazquez in the 80th minute for a lacklustre performance. Iran did cause some jitters in the 82nd minute when Amiri nutmegged Pique to deliver a cross into the box. But Mehdi went agonisingly over the crossbar. Spain spent the next few minutes until the final whistle, passing their way to glory as Iran were left chasing shadows.
In the end, it was an expected victory for Spain, although nobody expected them to be tested to such an extent by Iran. Iran’s defence was resolute, but they did not have enough answers in front of goal. Spain did what they do best—pass. Against any other team, it would have garnered better results, but they were up against a team that was notorious for playing for draws more than anything. With the victory, Spain moved to second place behind Portugal, with both teams sharing four points each. Spain may have won, but if there is one thing this World Cup has shown, it is that the underdogs are not to be taken lightly whatsoever.