New Zealand are out at the group stage
That's that, then. New Zealand are out at the group stage — the maths finally caught up. A disappointing end, but there'll be stories to tell and lessons to take from it.
Iran v New Zealand
52OurXI Strength34
Match events
- 7
E. Just
Goal · C. Wood
- 32
R. Rezaeian
Goal · Normal Goal
- 46
A. Yousefi
Substitution · M. Ghaedi
- 53
S. Moghanlou
Substitution · A. Alipour
- 54
E. Just
Goal · C. Wood
- 64
M. Mohebi
Goal · R. Rezaeian
- 65
S. Ghoddos
Substitution · E. Hajsafi
- 68
C. McCowatt
Substitution · R. Thomas
- 68
L. Cacace
Substitution · B. Old
- 78
T. Payne
Substitution · C. Elliot
- 80
M. Taremi
Substitution · A. Hosseinzadeh
- 89
Ehsan Hajsafi
Booking · Yellow Card
- 90+2
S. Singh
Substitution · J. Randall
- 90+2
M. Stamenic
Substitution · T. Bindon
Why it matters
Group stage, Group G — points on the line.
Who to watch
Talisman
Mehdi Taremi
Iran
The man Iran lean on for goals and gravity — their go-to source of inspiration up top.
vs
Talisman
Chris Wood
New Zealand
The focal point up front and the man New Zealand lean on, though an injury-plagued 2026 has clouded his run-in to the tournament.
Developing
Iran are out at the group stage
That's that, then. Iran are out at the group stage — the maths finally caught up. A disappointing end, but there'll be stories to tell and lessons to take from it.
Iran are through to the last 32
Iran have squeezed through as one of the best third-placed sides. Not the comfortable route — but a place in the last 32 is a place in the last 32, and the knockouts don't care how you got there.
Teams out: Iran 4-4-2 · New Zealand 4-2-3-1. Full lineups on the pitch in the Lineups tab.