- Spain have won each of their last five World Cup matches when they have been drawing 0-0 at half time, all by a 1-0 scoreline. Iran were successful in setting traps for Spain to play into the wide areas. ¡Así lo celebramos!¡VAMOS, ESPAÑA! Keeping with their traditional 4-3-3 formation, the fit-again Real Madrid right-back Carvajal replaced Nacho, scorer of a fantastic volley vs Portugal. World Cup Match Report for Iran v Spain on 20 June 2018, includes all goals and incidents. When the ball was kept centrally, Iran kept a tight diamond midfield, denying Spain the space required to play into this midfield area and cutting off passing lanes into striker Diego Costa. Spain and Iran are tied 0-0 and Iran have been brilliant in the defence to deny a goal to Spain, There are Iran defenders everywhere! "Right now we want to concentrate on what we’re doing and what we have. The information contained in Goal.com may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the prior written authority of Goal.com, Iran 0 Spain 1: Costa goal breaks stubborn resistance. As the ball was cleared from Iran’s box and their players pushed up out of the danger area, they could not regain their diamond shape quickly enough. It rebounds off the Iran player and into the goal! How will novel coronavirus behave in winter? In this tactical analysis, we will look at the tactics of Iran and how their defensive shape almost led them to a famous result against a team ranked 27 places above them. VAR confirms Ezatolahi was offside! No goal. Iran keep possession as Spain hit it out, Iniesta earns a corner for Spain. Silva with the assist and Costa is looking to roll over the defender. Hierro replaced Lopetegui after he was sensationally fired two days before the opener, but the 50-year-old's appointment triggered reports in the Spanish media that alleged players were divided over the change. Under the guidance of Carlos Queiroz, Iran had one of the best qualifying records for the 2018 World Cup which saw them concede a mere two goals in their last 13 qualifying matches. This resulted in shooting opportunities for Iran’s two players who dropped off to ringfence the ball. Once an Iran player was drawn towards him, he passed to Busquets. The match was a complete show of Iran defence as they kept denying Spain. The Asian side almost scored the most unlikely of openers when Karim Ansarifard's instinctive effort from a corner flashed into David De Gea's side netting. Spain manager Hierro, appointed two days before the start of the tournament, made two changes to the line-up that started the 3-3 draw with Portugal. Game 20 of the FIFA Men’s World Cup began with both teams having realistic hopes of progression to the knockout stages given their positive results from the first round of games. Bahasa - Indonesia; Chinese (simplified) Deutsch; English - Australia ; English - Canada; English - Ghana; English - International; English - Ireland; English - Kenya; English - Malaysia; English - Nigeria; English - Nordics; English - Singapore; English - South Africa; English - United Kingdom; English - United States; Español - Español; Español - Atletico Madrid’s Koke lost his place to Vazquez who started in the right forward position with David Silva moving to central midfield. The circumstances of the goal, coming after a Spain corner kick, highlights the effectiveness of Iran’s defensive organisation during open play. Iran defended deep and had their chances but it was just not the day for them, Four minutes of added time and it is Iran have that time to change the outcome of this match. UEFA A Licenced coach from Scotland living in the US, Ronnie Dog Media Comm. Spain, on the other hand, would be looking to change the scoreline in the second half. #IRNESP pic.twitter.com/6cQ6xtuIyC. That was a super chance again for Iran. Spain hold off Iran to win 1-0 in the Group B match and jump to top position ahead of Portugal with four points and better fair play record. All the deliveries were delivered high to be attacked at the edge of the six-yard box. Instead, it was either a long and high (to avoid interceptions) ball towards the striker or, if this was not an option, dribble and invite a foul. There was no goal scored in the first half and a lucky goal from Diego Costa gave Spain the lead. This meant when Iniesta (circled below) beat Iran’s initial press there was no one to collapse on him. A fortuitous Diego Costa goal helped Spain overcome a dogged Iran to secure a 1-0 win in their World Cup Group B clash in Kazan. Iran are third with three points. By remaining compact in the centre of the pitch and with an angled body shape, they forced Spain to play into their isolated wide forwards. Iran’s compactness resulted in Spain moving the ball from side to side but not quickly enough to cause Iran too many concerning moments, especially in the early stages of the game. Iran’s 6-4-0 with the diamond midfield in mid-block, When Spain looked to pass the ball into wide areas with their advanced full-backs, Iran’s wingers dropped to make it a 6 at the back. So many emotions from Iran players and fans all count for nothing. Ansarifard who has a height advantage over right-back Carvajal moves towards the ball to head it on. Incredibly, despite the disparity in possession, both teams committed 14 fouls. In this example we see the switch of play is too slow, so Silva is pressed as he receives the ball and Iran’s midfield can keep their diamond shape. The kick is sent in and it is over the defence. Then there is wrestling at the goal line. Both teams qualified impressively for the tournament – Morocco topped their group without losing a game and Iran also went unbeaten as they won their group ahead of … Whilst early in the game this played into Iran’s hands as it allowed Iran to overload and press the wide player on the ball to regain possession, Spain later adapted their play to overcome it. When Spain did this slow enough (especially Iran’s right side), it was a trigger for Iran to press with intensity and overload Spain in that section of the pitch. As soon as possession was won, Iran looked to hit long balls in behind Spain’s very advanced defence. Iran 0-1 Spain, RESULT – World Cup 2018: Diego Costa scores fortuitously to earn Fernando Hierro's side victory. This is "Iran v Spain | Full | World Cup 2018" by Persian League on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them. Whilst it did not result in many open play possessions, it did create throw-ins which were one of Iran’s main threats. "Have we any doubts about the coaching team? The corner is taken by Isco and it is to Silva at the goal line. David Silva has the ball inside the box and he takes the shot. Often teams that deploy an expansive passing and high pressing game, as Spain do, opt to deliberately foul the opposition to stop a counterattack when they are at their most vulnerable. Costa - who scored twice in Friday's pulsating 3-3 draw with Portugal - eventually found the breakthrough, though, when Ramin Rezaeian's attempted clearance cannoned off his leg and into the bottom-left corner. (Source: Reuters). Silva is six yards away from the goal. Iran had no interest in pressing Spain in Spain’s half, so they dropped off into a mid-block and invited their opposition onto them. Carvajal and Alba stayed high, almost as forwards, to allow Vasquez and Isco to play in the half-spaces giving Spain an overload in midfield. Spain, with its mix of proven World Cup winners and young stars, will be heavy favourites to emerge from Kazan with maximum points, though the Carlos Queiroz-coached Iranians top Group B after beating Morocco 1-0 in their opener. As Ansarifard moves towards the ball, the striker runs in behind him to try and collect the ball or at least put the covering defender under pressure. That is a kick directly into the Spain half. On the other side, Spain have won a free-kick outside the box, We have a change from Spain. The vast majority of the game was spent in what could be regarded as a 4-1-4-1 but as Iran’s “striker”, Armoun, was at times positioned closer to the Iran goal than Spain’s central defensive midfielder Busquets, it was more realistically a 4-6-0 that moved to a 6-4-0 depending on Spain’s movement in wide areas. The opposing managers formed a mutual appreciation society on Tuesday, with Queiroz praising Hierro for uniting the side at short order, and the Spaniard describing the 65-year-old Portuguese as a "wonderful man". Iran's resistance was nearly broken twice in quick succession at the start of the second period. Iran once again showing their top defence. - This result means all three matches on Wednesday ended 1-0. He cuts it back and then Ramos hits it towards the goal. Spain players are kick the ball but nothing out of it, GOAL! Akpoguma: Why I decided to play for my ‘fatherland’ Nigeria instead of Germany, Shorunmu: Gaining African experience crucial for young Nigeria goalkeepers, Arsenal’s Nketiah equals Shearer and Jeffers England record, Junior Ajayi scores as Al Ahly defeat ENPPI. Iran are winless against European opposition at the World Cup, having lost five of their six previous fixtures (D1). Indeed, they had the ball in the back of the net in the 64th minute from a free-kick but the goal was disallowed for offside. Taremi's back-post header fizzed over De Gea's crossbar seven minutes from time as Iran pushed for an equaliser, but Spain held on for a 1-0 win they certainly deserved.