The enduring appeal of professional wrestling is that, while on the surface it has all the hallmarks of being a sport – athletic competitors, title belts, weight divisions, taking place in a ring etc. – it is, of course, predetermined. While to many this is what strips it of any appeal, planning who will win ahead of time allows for narratives to be built and developed, leading to satisfying payoffs when done correctly. In the world of football, however, cohesive and satisfying narratives very rarely play-out; the status quo prevails, the underdogs lose and the fan favorites stay just that instead of championship winners.

And so, it’s with a heavy heart that it must be reported that Iceland lost 2-0 to Nigeria in Volgograd. After holding Argentina to a 1-1 draw in their opening game, it felt that Our Boys were ready to ascend to a higher tier of footballing respect. No longer just the plucky underdogs who tripped up England in Euro 2016, Iceland were a game away from joining the likes of Croatia and Belgium; countries that lack the lineage of the big boys but have the talent to make an impact today.

Instead, Heimir Hallgrimsson’s team were toothless in attack and spent the first half of the game dominating without being able to find the net. Being able to get the ball only two-thirds of the way up the pitch has come to be a defining trait of this World Cup but, unlike most other teams to suffer from this unfortunate affliction, Iceland have a history of being goal poachers rather than superstar strikers so they should have been able to find gaps and get the ball those final 12 yards.

That isn’t to say Nigeria were bad, if anything, in hindsight, it seems that they have been Iceland’s first real test since the start of Euro 2016. Their loss to France was a clear case of being outmatched but everyone else has either played to their level assuming they were there for the taking or – even if Argentina did have Messi – below it. The Super Eagles, on the other hand, set themselves up to counter the Icelandic tactics and set fairly deep, with Jon Obi Mikel spending more time as part of their defensive line, keeping their midfield five close enough to their back three to give Gylfi Sigurdsson and Aron Gunnarsson almost a whole team to play though – and at times they did, forcing keeper Francis Uzoho into action.

During the break, Nigeria’s coach Gernot Rohr must have shown his team just how many chances had been squandered because from the start of the second half they spread out, pushed up the pitch and started trying more vertical instead of horizontal passes, but it’s with a sloppy throw-in that Nigeria get their first. Hitting hard on the counter, they got bodies up in Iceland’s half and Victor Moses found Ahmed Musa with a perfectly weighted cross, who then smashed it in with a half-volley.

Iceland weren’t rattled but weren’t particularly fired up by going 1-0 down either. Maybe they had (too much) faith in their system or maybe they never had a plan B but either way, they kept sending the ball long, directly into a mass of Nigerian bodies, hoping Alfred Finnbogason or Sigurdsson would get on the end of it. Nigeria were much more creative and on the stroke of the 75th minute, Musa got his second; a fantastic run on the break that culminated with him forcing Iceland keeper Hannes Halldorsson to overcommit, leaving nothing but an open goal and two panicked defenders.

Desperation and fatigue had clearly set in by the time a penalty was awarded for a poor challenge by Tyronne Ebuehi on Finnbogason – otherwise anonymous throughout – and it appeared from the reverse angle that Sigurdsson played himself; he gave Uzoho the eyes, then must have realized that it was so blatant that even the TV cameras picked it out and hit it as hard as he could to beat the keeper. Instead he sent it over the bar and, worse, had fooled the Nigerian who went the wrong way. The match ended 2-0 leaving Iceland visibly distraught. Judging by the look on some of their faces, maybe the realization that having the best fans in the tournament means nothing on the pitch.

What seemed like a foregone conclusion is now anything but. Besides for a dominant Croatia on six points, the rest of the group is wide open. As unlikely as it seems, Argentina, on a miserly one point and already packing for the flight home after their humiliating defeat to Croatia, have a lifeline to the round of 16. A victory over the Super Eagles gives them enough points to qualify, and, assuming Iceland get nothing against Croatia, a four goal margin would confirm it. It’s unlikely but anything is possible in Group D.