World Cup 2018 Russia Update for June 21, 2018: For Once, Games Go According to Plan

No major upsets today, which for this World Cup, is actually kind of surprising, since it has become a regular feature to report on the upsets.

The day opened with Portugal and Morocco, and the game went more or less as one would have expected. Then, Uruguay had a tough time against Saudi Arabia, a team that wanted to redeem itself after getting whipping and humiliated by Russia in the opener. Still, they were only able to make it a close loss, but still a loss.

Finally, Iran and Spain battled. Iran had a predictably tough defensive strategy that bogged the dangerous Spanish offense down. Spain had a difficult time scoring, but once they finally did, the game immediately opened up and became quite exciting.

So, let's take a look at the World Cup games from yesterday:

Portugal 1, Morocco 0- This result was not surprising.

What was surprising, at least to some degree, was how effectively Morocco managed to slow Portugal's dangerous offense down. Indeed, Portugal is currently ranked forth in the world, but they have not really shown that in this World Cup. At least not yet, anyway.

Still, it looked like this was potentially going to be a blowout when Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo scored in the 4th minute, giving Portugal the early 1-0 lead.

Who knew that this would be the sum total of the scoring in this game?

Yes, both teams had some chances afterwards, yet neither managed to convert. Portugal was not able to put up more of a cushion, and Morocco was not able to get the equalizer.

With the win, Portugal is on track to qualify for an appearance in the elimination round. All they have to do, really, is avoid losing their next game. A tie or a win would get them in.

Morocco, on the other hand, are eliminated from any chance at reaching the elimination round.

Uruguay 1, Saudi Arabia 0 - Uruguay tends to play a gritty, defensive style, and so there was a good chance that this game was not going to be one of those high scoring, explosive shootouts.

Still, Uruguay was very determined to win. A win would secure a place in the second round, and would also mean that Russia would clinch a spot in the second round, as well.

Luis Suárez received a lucky break from an error by Saudi Arabia's goalkeeper, Mohammed Al-Owais, who failed to secure the ball after a corner. Suárez simply tapped it in to give Uruguay the 1-0 lead in the 23rd minute.

That was all the scoring that they would need. Saudi Arabia had a few chances, but Uruguay was able to hold them off and secured the win, and clinched a berth in the second round, as well.

After the game, Suárez announced that his wife is pregnant.

For Saudi Arabia, they have only made it past the first round once in their history at the World Cup, back in 1994. They have lost 10 of their last 12 World Cup games, and have not won any of those 12 games.

Spain 1, Iran 0 - Spain was a dynasty in this sport not too long ago. They won the Euro in 2008, then  followed that up by winning their first ever World Cup in 2010 in South Africa. Then, they again won the Euro in 2012, becoming a legitimate dynasty.

And even though that incredible success tapered off a bit over the past few years, they are still a very dangerous and talented side that remains a serious threat for the title.

Yet, the frustration from the Spanish side was clearly visible as they walked off the field for halftime locked in a scoreless tie with Iran. The Iranians had come fairly close to surprise goals during the first half, and would do so again in the second half, and it was all too easy to imagine a scenario where one of th most talented and explosive sides in the sport might find themselves suddenly, shockingly down.

Then, just like that, Spain finally broe through. In truth, it was rather a fluke. A Iranian defender , Ramin Rezaeian, tried to clear a Spanish threat from near the goal, but wound up hitting it right to the knee of Diego Costa, and it ricocheted past Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand for the first goal of the game during the 54th minute. Spain, despite their earlier frustrations against a very tough defense from Iran, had a 1-0 lead.

Even that still did not appear to be enough, when Saeid Ezatolahi seemed to get a goal for Iran in the 63rd minute. The Iranian players on the field and off the bench flocked to him in a wild celebration at tying the goal, and it was easy to imagine that the Iranian side would revert back to the more defensive minded approach, ending the more open game that they had been forced into when Spain finally broke through. However, the goal was disallowed when it was revealed that Ezatolahi was clearly offside during the penalty kick, and so the goal was rightly taken away from Iran. 

And so, Iran went back to the more open side, desperately trying to find the equalizer. They came close a couple of times, but ultimately, fell just short. Many players collapsed in a mixture of exhaustion and frustration as time expired, and Spain had preserved that narrow one goal lead for the 1-0.

Iran still has a chance to make it to the second round if they follow the same game plan against Portugal and have better luck, although it clearly would have been easier had they managed to pull this one off, or at least would have tied it. But luck was not on Iran's side during yesterday's match. They had an excellent game plan and strong execution, yet sheer bad luck allowed Spain to break through, on a day when they otherwise were unable to overcome the strong Iranian defense. Also, a couple of shots that might have gone in for Iran simply did not, although Spain hung onto the ball for the vast majority of the game.

For Spain, this was a much needed win. It was not pretty, and in fact, was a downright ugly win. But a win is a win, and it earns them three much needed points, after the disappointing tie with Portugal that they had to settle for, on a day when they probably should have won. But they got the three points and earned the win in this one, helping their cause considerably.