Kazan: Spain team were grateful for a big slice of luck on Wednesday as they overcame a stubborn Iran side to claim a 1-0 win.
Diego Costa scored the only goal for Spain after 54 minutes when he was tackled by Ramin Rezaeian, only for the ball to ricochet back off Costa's shin and into the back of the net.
Iran thought they had equalised shortly after but, following a VAR intervention, Saeid Ezatolahi's bundled effort was correctly ruled out for offside.
Mehdi Taremi then headed over in the closing stages as Iran were forced to abandon their ultra-defensive approach.
The win takes Spain joint top of Group B with Portugal on four points, while Iran sit just below them with three points.
The final group games take place on Monday, with Spain against Morocco and Iran taking on Portugal.
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