UAE's World Cup dream takes a hit with Iran defeat

The Azadi Stadium was briefly plunged into darkness on Thursday evening, a moment that seemed to mirror the UAE’s dimming hopes of securing a top-two finish in Group A of World Cup qualifying following a 2-0 defeat to Iran.

The match had barely begun when, with just 15 minutes on the clock, referee Ko Hyung-Jin halted proceedings due to a floodlight failure. Play was suspended for nearly 30 minutes, with both teams retreating to the sidelines.

When the action finally resumed, Iran controlled possession, but it was the UAE who had the golden chance to take the lead.

A careless pass gifted Caio Lucas a clear path to goal, leaving him one-on-one with Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand. Yet, with the goal at his mercy, Lucas misfired, sending the ball wide and spurning what should have been the game’s opening goal.

As the first half stretched into an extraordinary 29 minutes of additional time, Mackenzie Hunt came close to redemption for the UAE. Nineteen minutes into the added time, he unleashed a fierce shot from the left of the box, but Beiranvand got a hand to it to keep the score goalless.

The UAE's frustration over missed opportunities deepened just before halftime when Saman Ghoddos delivered a perfectly weighted pass into the box, finding Sardar Azmoun, who expertly directed a deft header past Khalid Eissa to hand the Group A leaders the advantage.

It was a cruel blow for the UAE, who had carved out the better chances in the opening 45 minutes. But in football at this level, missed opportunities almost always come back to haunt you.

The second half began with Iran nearly doubling their lead as Mohammad Mohebi slotted the ball past Eissa after latching onto a through ball. However, the linesman’s flag went up, and after a tense VAR review, the goal was ruled out for an extremely narrow offside.

Iran’s second half dominance eventually paid off, and Mohebi got his reward 25 minutes later. Picking up the ball just beyond the halfway line, he skipped past Kouame Kouadio and slotted home Iran’s second.

In the dying moments, substitute Caio Canedo came agonisingly close to providing a glimmer of hope for the UAE, but his well-placed header drifted just wide of the post, sealing their fate in a 2-0 defeat.

To compound matters, Uzbekistan’s victory over Kyrgyzstan widened the gap between the UAE and the second spot in Group A to six points. With only the top two teams earning automatic qualification for the 2026 World Cup, the road ahead has become steeper.

Still, hope remains alive for the Whites, who have three games left to turn their fortunes around. A win against North Korea in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday is now imperative, and the UAE will also be counting on Iran to defeat Uzbekistan the same evening.

If results go their way, the UAE could close the gap to just three points ahead of a crucial showdown with Uzbekistan in June, a match that could ultimately determine the fate of who will secure their place in next summer’s finals.