AL RAJYAN, Qatar (AP) — After protests engulfing Iran erupted at the World Cup, its national team belatedly rallied for its first victory at the tournament in Qatar.
Rozbeh Cesmi scored in the eighth minute of second-half stoppage time to break the deadlock and Iran went on to beat Wales 2-0 on Friday.
The team’s goal celebration was in contrast to the scene outside Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, where pro-government fans harassed anti-government supporters of the national team.
Iran’s victory came after a disastrous 6-2 loss to England in the opener in Qatar, while the players were dogged by questions about the unrest in Iran.
“I believe it was the solidarity between the team members that we were able to achieve this result,” Cesmi said afterwards through a translator.
His shot from outside the box was just beyond the reach of Wales stand-in goalkeeper Danny Ward, who was pressed into duty when starter Wayne Hennessy was sent off in the 86th minute for a high challenge on Mehdi Taremi.
Ramin Rezaian added a second goal moments later and Iran wildly celebrated – throwing coach Carlos Queiroz into the air – as the Welsh players fell to the pitch in disbelief.
“It was really very emotional, especially because we recovered from a difficult situation,” said Queiroz, “No one likes to lose and especially when you lose with these numbers. It’s hard work. But that’s the beauty of the game, there’s only one game ahead of you.”
Iran plays the United States on Tuesday in its final match in Group B. The US was scheduled to play England on Friday night.
Gareth Bale recorded his 110th cap for Wales, the most ever for the national team, but the Welshman looked sluggish early on after a 1-1 draw with the United States in their Group B opener.
Wales, who dropped to bottom of the group with the loss, face a tough challenge in England on Tuesday.
“We want to finish the competition on a high, it’s out of our hands in terms of passing, but we want to finish with a good performance and a win,” Wales coach Rob Page said.
Wales are making only their second World Cup appearance and first since 1958.
Bale, who last season played for Major League Soccer’s LAFC, finished with 41 goals for the national team, although he surpassed teammate Chris Gunter (109) for the most appearances of all time.
Bouncing back from a crushing defeat by England, Iran went one better against Wales for their first World Cup victory over European opposition. Iran has never reached the knockout stages of a World Cup.
Since arriving in Qatar, the Iranian team has been dogged by questions about the unrest at home. The players, who did not sing the national anthem at kickoff in an apparent show of solidarity with the protesters, held hands and sang on Friday.
“Our job is to produce joy, happiness, pride for people. That’s our job. We are not indifferent to everything that happens in the world. But we – as doctors, as engineers, as pilots – have to do our jobs,” Queiroz said. “We hope that these 90 minutes of entertainment really help people feel that joy, that happiness and that pride,” Queiroz said.
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