Iran wait on World Cup progress after draw with Egypt, who move into last-32

Iran face an anxious wait to see if they will progress to the World ⁠Cup knockout ⁠stages after they came from behind to hold Egypt to a 1-1 draw ⁠and finish third in Group G on Friday.

Egypt, whose qualification for the last-32 was already guaranteed, took the lead inside five minutes through Mahmoud Saber, before Ramin Rezaeian equalised from a tight ⁠angle ⁠in the 14th minute of a frantic start.

Iran’s Mehdi Taremi – who had a penalty saved in the first half – hit the crossbar with a late header before ⁠Shoja Khalilzadeh thought he had scored a dramatic 93rd-minute winner, but it was ruled out for offside.

The draw means Egypt finish second with five ⁠points, ‌behind Belgium ‌on goal difference. ⁠Iran are third ‌on three points and must wait for confirmation ⁠that they will ⁠go through as one of ⁠the eight best third-placed teams.