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#3 Iran go 149 minutes without conceding a goal at the World Cup
Having managed to do that to Morocco in the opening fixture and then going on to steal all three points thanks to a stoppage-time own-goal, Iran had taken their first step towards defying expectations. If the manner in which they won the three points had a huge element of luck behind it, their defensive display was down to their hard work and determination.
They were very effective at thwarting any attack that the African side tried to muster up and rendered most of their attacking players utterly useless as Morocco failed to mount any serious challenge on the Iranian goal.
As impressive as that was, the way they replicated that defensive rigidity in the first half against Spain was even more praise-worthy. They managed to keep Diego Costa from affecting the game by preventing the likes of David Silva, Andres iniesta, and Isco from providing the kind of service that the Spaniard striker revels in.
They kept that up for 9 minutes after the restart. However, this time Lady Luck was smiling on the Europeans as Hosseini tried to clear the danger, but the ball took a deflection off Costa and went in. What an unfortunate way to concede a goal for the minnows.
