A late red card and two last-minute goals have broken Welsh hearts as Iran, deservedly take all three points.
Iran pressed high and never gave up, Wales were clinging on from the beginning and this game highlighted their lack of fitness – Wales simply aren’t good enough to compete at this level.
It’s a World Cup and none of the players for Wales would have experienced the pressure of this competition. They were overrun in the midfield and imbalanced in attack.
Iran got their tactics and structure right and were simply a better team.
Wales goalkeeper gets late red card
Wayne Hennessey has over 100 caps for his country and had always been a reliable fixture for Wales. He is the third goalkeeper in the history of the World Cup to have received a red card. He was red-carded with just four minutes of regular time remaining, following a VAR check, for a reckless challenge.
With this loss, Wales’ first World Cup in 64 years looks set to end in the group stages.
Iran substitute Rouzbeh Cheshmi struck from 20 yards nine minutes into stoppage time before Ramin Rezeian sealed the victory with a final goal from a revitalised Iran.
Iran will be buzzing, they have a chance to progress out of the Group Stages for the first time in their World Cup history. Depending on if England beat USA – and by how much, Iran could make it to the next round.
Wales started poorly and conceded an early goal – it was ruled out for offside by VAR. But it set the tone for the rest of the match.
The atmosphere was electric, the Iranian supporters roared the team on. It was a deserved win – and an important one if Iran hope to progress.
Wales gutted but ready for England
“It’s gutting – there’s no other way to say it,” Bale said.
Manager Page was scathing in his assessment of Wales’ performance, which he described as “nowhere near the levels we’ve set”.
He added: “When there are so many off days, there is only one outcome. It’s a difficult changing room at the minute, but we will be ready [against England].”
Bale had the fewest touches (36) of any outfield player who was on for the whole game and managed only one shot on goal. The team captain failed to make an impact at all.
“We fought till the end but it’s difficult when you go down to 10 men in the World Cup against good teams,” Bale added.
“We have to keep going and we have to pick ourselves up straight away. It will be difficult now, but we have to try to beat England – it’s as simple as that.”
Iran reaction – ‘We’re bleeding in our pride’
The reaction from Iran coach Carlos Queiroz
“Two points. We played today with amazing character, which is the profile of our team. We play with a sense of unity, cohesion. After the first game we need to get back on route.
“The second point was to get rid of this bad feeling of bleeding. Football is a game of different moments. It’s not because you win or lose.
“Sometimes you lose your dignity, your honour, but of course in our first game we were bleeding in our pride. This was an opportunity to rebound. We put a good scarf [bandage] to stop the bleeding.
“We played brilliantly and deserved to win.”
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