Cristiano Ronaldo, the man for the big occasions, missed a penalty but it ultimately did not cost Portugal as they sealed their place in the last-16 after holding out for a dramatic 1-1 draw with Iran.
Ricardo Quaresma fired the European champions ahead in the 45th minute with a stunning goal before Ronaldo missed the spot-kick minutes after the break. The Real Madrid star then luckily avoided a red card following an 80th-minute VAR review. And the very VAR came back to haunt Portugal as Iran got a dubious injury-time penalty for a handball by Cedric Soares. Karim Ansarifard made no mistake from the spot. And Iran got a golden chance to stun Portugal but Mehdi Taremi missed a gilt-edged chance in the dying minutes.
With Spain drawing 2-2 against Morocco, Portugal finished second in the group. Ronaldo & Co. now face a tricky test in the form of Uruguay in the knockouts.
Both the teams entered the contest with different aims in their minds. While Portugal needed just a draw, Iran needed all the three points to make it to the next stage. However, they could only hold on Portugal for the first 45 minutes before Quaresma struck. He swapped passes with Adrien Silva on the right, before striking sweetly with the outside of his right foot from the edge of the area.
Eight minutes after the break, Portugal had the chance to put the game to the bed after being given a penalty when Ronaldo skipped past a pair of defenders and went down under a challenge from Saeid Ezatolahi. Referee Enrique Caceres initially waved away the appeals, but eventually awarded the spot-kick after reviewing the incident.
As expected, Ronaldo stepped up to take the important kick. However, the 33-year old, who scored 4 goals in the first two games, could not get the ball past Iran goalkeeper Beiranvand.
As the game progressed, the players started losing their cool. Ronaldo avoided a red card when VAR asked the referee to review his off-the-ball swing of the arm at in the direction of Morteza Pouraliganji. However, the referee decided a booking was sufficient after reviewing the incident.
But moments later, the VAR came back to haunt Portugal. Iran got a chance to equalise in the injury time when Sardar Azmoun headed a corner onto the arm of Soares at close range. After a three-minute delay, the referee controversially awarded a penalty. And unlike Ronaldo, Ansarifard made no mistake from the spot.
There was still some drama left in the game. Taremi looked all set to score the winner for Iran. However, he hit the side netting from six yards instead of scoring, much to Portugal’s relief.