Iran beat Wales 2-0 in their second game in Group B in the FIFA World Cup in Qatar after scoring two goals in the final two minutes of stoppage time at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Doha on Friday.

Having lost their first game to England 6-2, Iran were closer to the win-or-go-home situation than Wales, which held USA 1-1 in their first game. Such difference in their fighting will mean Iran were more aggressive on the field and spared no efforts in taking every opportunity to attack.

By contrast, Wales seemed more okay with another draw and played in a more conservative way in Friday's game. Their confidence also came from the wide defensive coverage of Ethan Ampadu in the midfield.

Iran's attacks in the first half spoke louder than what they actually generated. The team's two starting strikers, Mehdi Taremi and Sardar Azmoun, were unable to beat Welsh defenders on their own. Their teammates have not been known for making accurate passes. That explained why Iran often had to pass from over 35 meters and most of their passes were taken care of by Ampadu.

However, the hidden sign of the above developments was that once Iran's pass reached Taremi or Azmoun in the good area, they could immediately threaten the opponents' goal. Wales should have seen that in the offside goal at the 15th minute. They had their own opportunity to score but Kieffer Moore's shot in the goal area was denied by Iran's goalkeeper Hossein Hosseini.

That turned out to be likely the best chance for Wales to threaten the opponents' goal. Moore is a qualified option to receive and deal with the ball like a pivot in the front field, but only when his teammates could make good passes to him and work around him.

Having been overloaded too quickly and too early, Ampadu saw his defensive coverage shrink fast as the game went on. Both Azmoun and Ali Gholizadeh hit the goalpost with their shots at the 52nd and 54th minutes. As Wales continued to pull back, they allowed their opponents an increasingly bigger area to work offensively. At the 74th minute, Saeid Ezatolahi's shot right in front of the box was rejected by Wayne Hennessey.

Ten minutes later, Hennessey rushed out of the box but failed to stop Iran's pass. Moreover, he dropped Terami, who would otherwise get a chance to shoot at the open goal. Referee Mario Escobar first only gave Hennessey a yellow card but then changed it into a red one after checking the video assistant referee monitor. Wales had to replace Aaron Ramsey with backup goalkeeper Danny Ward. As a result, they lost their best playmaking option.

Iran's goal finally came during the stoppage time when Rouzbeh Cheshmi blew the ball into the left corner of the goal from outside the box. Having fallen into trailing with less than two minutes to go, Wales sent almost everyone to the front field for one final attempt. Nonetheless, it didn't take long for their pass to be cut by Iran who then launched a quick counterstrike.

Ramin Rezaeian faced Ward around the penalty area and then scored the second goal for Iran with a smart flip shot. Playing against Wales was the 10th time for Iran to face a European team in the World Cup and they finally secured their first win out of these 10 games.

With three points in their hands, Iran will play against USA in their final game in Group B on November 29. Wales, which only have one point, will face England on the same day.