Plenty of opportunities emerged after Nathan Ngoy’s sending-off, but neither Belgium nor Iran could find the back of the net in their World Cup Group G encounter.
Belgium were somewhat lucky to secure a point after defender Nathan Ngoy was dismissed midway through the second half of their clash with Iran.
Ngoy received his marching orders just past the hour mark when he lost control of possession and deliberately brought down Mehdi Taremi, who was racing towards the Belgian goal.
The draw leaves both nations with two points from two matches, meaning everything will be on the line in the final round of Group G fixtures.
Iran, who arrived in Los Angeles later than planned after travel delays from their training base in Tijuana, survived early Belgian pressure as Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne both went close to scoring before the Asian side began to threaten themselves.
Thibaut Courtois had to react sharply to parry away Hossein Kanani’s attempt, and moments later Iran thought they had taken the lead through an inventive set-piece routine.
Ehsan Hajisafi appeared ready to strike from 25 yards but instead slipped a clever pass to Taremi, who exploited a gap in the wall and steered the ball past Courtois. However, Iran’s celebrations were cut short after a VAR review confirmed Taremi was marginally offside.
Courtois continued to be Belgium’s saviour in the second half, producing another vital stop to deny the lively Taremi. At the other end, Tractor goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand, who had shaken off an early injury concern, pulled off two superb saves from Maxim De Cuyper to preserve a valuable point for Iran.
Ngoy’s dismissal opened up the game considerably, leading to a frantic finale in which both sides had chances but failed to convert. The contest ultimately ended in a goalless stalemate — only the third such result in this World Cup so far.
With the first three matches in Group G all ending in draws, attention now turns to the upcoming clash between New Zealand and Egypt in the early hours of Monday, where one team will hope to finally take control of the group heading into the decisive final matchday.
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