Iran scored twice after the eighth minute of stoppage time to snatch a stunning 2-0 win over Wales on Friday that breathed new life into their World Cup campaign and left the Welsh flat on their backs and facing a make-or-break decider against England.

After Wales ‘keeper Wayne Hennessey was sent off in the 87th minute, Iran produced a remarkable finale, with Roozbeh Cheshmi driving home to give them the lead before Ramin Rezaeian added another in the 11th minute of stoppage time.

Iran, who had been facing elimination if they lost, were almost unrecognisable from the side that was thrashed 2-6 by England in their opener, and they were deserved winners even if they left it very late.

Carlos Queiroz’s side were twice denied by the woodwork in the second half at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium and made the most of the extra man after Hennessey was given his marching orders following a dreadful head-high challenge on Mehdi Taremi.

The win was another feather in the cap for Asian sides after Saudi Arabia’s shock victory over Argentina and Japan’s triumph over Germany, as the assault on the traditional soccer powerbases of Europe and South America continues.

Once again, Iran’s buildup to the match had been dominated by speculation about how the players would respond to anti-government protests at home and whether they would give the national anthem the silent treatment as they did against England. This time they sang along, to a backdrop of boos and jeers from the crowd with some fans pictured sobbing in the stands.

“Our performance before the red card was not acceptable,” said Wales coach Rob Page. “We were nowhere near the levels we’ve set and the standards we’ve set in recent games.”

Wales captain Gareth Bale, who became Wales’ mostcapped player with 110 appearances, said the players were gutted. “It is going to be difficult for us for sure.”

A show of character

Iran’s coach and players put their stunning World Cup turnaround on Friday down to winning their own mental battles, amid growing public pressure on them to make a stand over a deadly crackdown on protests against their country’s clerical rulers.

“I don’t have words to congratulate my players, they were brilliant,” coach Carlos Queiroz told a news conference.

“We played with amazing, amazing character, which is the profile of our team usually. We always play with a sense of unity, cohesion, always. Today we made it very clear, football is a game of different moments.”

Iran were thrashed 6-2 in their opening Group B match against England. Queiroz said the controversy plaguing his team meant their first match against England was already a write-off and his team’s pride was “bleeding”.

“England, Wales, United States, they came to this World Cup with three games. Unfortunately, we lost the opportunity to play the first game. We only have two.”

Reuters