Wales will try to build on their second-half performance against the United States on Friday with a win against Iran in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
A Gareth Bale penalty secured a point for Wales against the USA on Monday night, with the Dragons drawing 1-1 after a poor first-half showing. The introduction of Kieffer Moore in the second half tilted the game in Wales’ favour, and it won’t be a surprise if the striker is promoted to the starting XI on Friday morning.
Despite their big defeat, Iran still managed to score two against England in their first game in Group B, showing the threat at hand from Team Melli. Joe Allen is in a race to be fit for Wales, with the midfielder having returned to training prior to the clash.
So, can Wales pick up their first win of the 2022 World Cup against Iran on Friday? We simulated the game to find out.
We simulated Wales vs Iran to get a score prediction
To run this simulation, we used FIFA 23 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions. We didn't select a team to control, with the World Class AI playing against each other to get a score prediction.
We predict that Wales could line up in a 3-4-3 formation, with their line-up unchanged from the win over Iran: Hennessey; Mepham, Rodon, Davies; Roberts, Ramsey, Morrell, Williams; Bale, Moore, James.
We predict that Iran could set up in a 4-5-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Hosseini; Moharrami, Pouraliganji, Hosseini, Mohammadi; Jahanbakhsh, Noorollahi, Ezatolahi, Hajisafi, Amiri; Tameri.
The game began an even content, with both sides seeing lots of the ball but failing to create any major chances. Alireza Jahanbakhsh was chopped down outside the box to earn Iran a free-kick in a dangerous position after 34 minutes, and the ex-Brighton winger scored from the resulting set-piece.
Jahanbakhsh stepped up to take the effort 31 yards from goal, and with his right foot, the Iranian winger lifted the ball over the wall and into the top right corner of the net, flying past the outstretched Wayne Hennessey. Wales couldn't respond as Team Melli took the lead into the break.
Wales started on top in the second half, with Gareth Bale rattling the post with a free-kick of his own just after the restart. Rob Page's side looked dangerous, and they found the equaliser after 59 minutes through Dan James.
A driven cross into the box by Neco Williams was picked up by Kiefer Moore, but a poor touch took the striker away from goal. Moore quickly made up for his error with a delightful backheel into the path of James, and the Fulham winger fired across goal and into the corner from close range.
Iran continued to cause trouble as they creates some big chances, and in the 74th minute, they took the lead as Mehdi Taremi met a cross at the front post to head through the legs of Hennessey. Wales threw everything forward in the final moments of the game, and they managed to find an extremely late equaliser with the last kick of the contest.
After clearing a corner with seconds of the three added minutes remaining, Iran conceded possession just outside their own box when Bale made a great challenge on Ahmad Nourollahi. The forward quickly found Aaron Ramsey in the box, and after cutting onto his left, the midfielder fired past the 'keeper to level the score.
FIFA 23 predicted score: Wales 2-2 Iran
Here are the full-time match stats.
FIFA 23 predicts that Aaron Ramsey could secure a late point in Group B, with the Dragons drawing 2-2 against Iran. Both teams were extremely evenly matched, but a spirited performance from Wales could make it two draws from two in the 2022 World Cup.
FIFA 23 is developed by EA Vancouver and EA Romania and is now available worldwide on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Stadia, PS4, and Xbox One.
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