DOHA, Qatar —Iran kept their hopes of qualification for the World Cup round of 16 alive by scoring twice in the final 11 minutes of stoppage time to beat Wales 2-0 and throw Group B wide open.
After Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey was sent off in the 86th minute for a foul on Mehdi Taremi outside the box, Rob Page’s team were overrun by the Iranians, who scored through Rouzbeh Cheshmi and Ramin Rezaeian. Iran had earlier hit the post twice in a dominant performance and thoroughly deserved their late win.
Iran’s victory means that they now go into Tuesday’s final group game against the United States knowing that a win will take them into the knockout stages.
Wales, meanwhile, now need to beat England on Tuesday to have any hope of reaching the round of 16.
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Rapid Reaction
1. Hennessey red costly as Iran strike late
Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey earned himself the dubious distinction of becoming the first player to be sent off at Qatar 2022 and did so with a foul that earned comparisons with one of the most infamous moments in World Cup history.
The 35-year-old was initially shown a yellow card by Guatemalan referee Mario Escobar after racing out of his penalty area before colliding with Iran forward Taremi, but it was the definition of a clear and obvious error by the official.
VAR official, the Canadian Drew Fischer, called a review and Escobar rescinded the yellow card and issued a red instead.
It was a crazy decision by Hennessey to race out of his area and a clear red card, so dangerous was his challenge, which was a high foot that caught Taremi in the chest.
The foul brought back images of West Germany goalkeeper Harald Schumacher’s foul on France’s Patrick Battiston during the 1982 World Cup semifinal. Battiston suffered damaged vertebrae in the incident, while Schumacher was not even booked.
Hennessey’s red card proved hugely costly for Wales who, down to 10 men, conceded two stoppage time goals to Cheshmi and Rezaeian. But Iran were much the better side throughout — hitting the post twice inside a nine-second spell — and deserved their victory which keeps their hopes alive and leaves Wales needing to beat England to have any chance of reaching the second round.
