After 90-plus minutes of goalless action, Iran just needed one moment of glory to get its World Cup back on track in a dramatic 2–0 victory over Wales.
With Wales down to 10 men after goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey’s red card, Rouzbeh Cheshmi stunned the Welsh with his 98th-minute goal to break a scoreless deadlock as the controversy-consumed Team Melli reveled in celebration. Three minutes later, Ramin Rezaeian added a second goal to seal Iran’s first win against a European team at the World Cup in 10 tries.
After coming back to draw the U.S. men’s national team, Wales was outdone by an Iranian side that was humbled by England in a 6–2 defeat to open Group B play at the 2022 World Cup. The result appears to play into the hands of the United States, who will face England later on Friday before closing out the group stage against Iran.
