QATAR WORLD CUP 2022 – Iran vs USA: USA Qualifies For the Round of 16

QATAR WORLD CUP 2022 – Iran vs USA 0-1, USA in the Round of 16

FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has continued to surprise and entertain us all with its closely-contested matches. With multiple upsets in the tournament’s first week, the qualification scenarios of a number of big teams were disturbed.

Iran, the USA, England, and Wales were in group B of the FIFA World Cup 2022. Even though these teams are not as strong and competitive as some of the other big football names, still the geopolitical significance and close contests in the group made it a treat to watch.

England had beaten Iran comprehensively with a margin of 6-2 while USA had drawn its first two matches against Wales and England. Iran found a way to beat Wales with a scoreline of 2-0.

This made the Iran vs. USA game a practical knockout. While the winner was guaranteed a spot in the top-2, even a draw was enough to help Iran’s chances of qualifying to the Round of 16.

Considering all the talk about Iran-USA conflict, the match had great emotions involved as a World Cup qualification and a country’s prestige were at stake here.

Iran vs USA – As It Happened:

The Iran-USA match was scheduled on 29th November 2022. Both the teams had prepared well for the match. USA had come out aggressively, trying to score the first goal and secure a qualification to the Round of 16. One the other hand, Iran seemed a little defensive in the beginning and were happy to draw the game and go through.

USA made multiple attempts on the Iranian goal in the first few minutes of the match to show that they were in it to win it. Iranian defence did well to prevent them from scoring but it was only a matter of time till USA strikers penetrated the Iranian wall.

Iran vs USA – Goal:

The eventual moment of glory came in the 38th minute of the match when Christian Pullisic received a great ball from the right flank and deposited into the net to make the scoreline 1-0 in the favour of USA. This was a huge moment in the game as USA continued to play aggressively while Iran could no longer sit back and try to defend. Iran had a second scare in the dying moments of the first half when USA scored the match’s second goal. However, it was judged off-side and Iran had barely survived.

Iran vs USA – Second Half:

In the second half, Iran were a lot more expressive and aggressive. They planned channelized attacks but were well-contained by the American defence. Iran got a few opportunities but failed to score. In the final minute of play, Iran were pleading for a foul and penalty but they weren’t awarded one.

Iran vs USA – Statistics:

Eventually, the game finished 1-0. Both the sides played well and tried their best to go through to the next Round. However, USA were the better of the two sides as they took 12 shots, with 5 of them being on-target and also won 5 corners. On the other end, Iran managed only 4 shots and one corner. USA will take on Netherlands in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup.

What is FIFA World Cup?

The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men’s national teams of the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA, the International Federation of Association Football), the sport’s global governing body. The tournament has been held every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946 when it was not held because of the Second World War.

The format involves a qualification phase, which takes place over the preceding three years, to determine which teams qualify for the tournament phase. In the tournament phase, 32 teams compete for the title at venues within the host nation(s) over about a month. The host nation(s) automatically qualify.

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