Iran narrowly won their first game at the World Cup in Russia after defeating Morocco 1-0 at the Saint-Petersburg Stadium in Saint Petersburg on Friday, June 15. The Moroccans failed to cover the spread at -0.5, while the game went under 2.5 goals, as expected. Carlos Queiroz’s side got three unexpected points and now they are facing Spain in the second round.
Game Recap
Morocco entered this tilt furiously and dominated in the opening 20 minutes but missed a couple of opportunities to score, especially Younes Belhanda and Medhi Benatia who failed to put the ball behind Alireza Beiranvand’s back in the 19th minute. Amine Harit had a half-chance in the 30th minute, while SardarAzmoun had a one-on-one opportunity to give Iran a lead in the 43rd minute, but Munir cut the angle and made a save.
The second half provided no excitements until the 80th minute when Hakim Ziyech’s shot from outside of the box was stopped by Beiranvand, and just when everybody thought it’s going to end without goals, the shock occurred in injury time. The substitute Aziz Bouhaddouz sent the ball into his own net after a cross from the free-kick and left his goalkeeper stunned in the 95th minute, and although undeservedly, the Iranian celebrated an unlikely victory, making the punters who backed them at +320 very happy. Those who played under 2.5 goals at -278 didn’t make plenty of money, but the braver ones who opted for under 1.5 goals at +110 doubled their stake. The first own goal at the tournament helped the punters who backed 1-0 correct score at +800.
The BetDSI Sportsbook has offered odds on Iran to win the World Cup ranging from +25000 up to +75000, which means that the Iranians are still one of the biggest underdogs, while they are +1100 to reach the quarter-finals. On the other hand, Morocco’s chances to win the World Cup are now +200000, while the Atlas Lions are +2500 to go to the quarter-finals.
