No team at this World Cup made me feel worse than Iran, honestly. Can you imagine they had to travel from Mexico before every single game because they weren’t allowed to stay in the United States due to political reasons? On top of that, they couldn’t even recover properly after matches like the other teams. The playing field simply wasn’t level. Now imagine scoring a 96th-minute winner against Egypt, celebrating like you’d just qualified, only for the goal to be ruled out for an offside by the smallest of margins. In an instant, the dream of qualification was taken away. And it didn’t stop there. Until the 93rd minute of the Algeria vs. Austria game, Iran were going through as one of the best third-placed teams because Algeria were leading 3–2. But in the 96th minute, Austria equalized, and just like that, Iran’s qualification disappeared again. That minute must have been the most heartbreaking moment of their lives. And please, stop blaming Algeria. They weren’t playing for Iran—they were playing for Algeria and millions of Algerian fans. If Algeria had lost, they would’ve been eliminated. If Austria had lost, they would’ve been eliminated too. Both teams had everything to play for, so expecting either of them to ease off or hand someone else qualification was never realistic. Every national team has one responsibility: fight for its own country. Iran’s elimination was heartbreaking, but it wasn’t Algeria’s fault—it was just the cruel side of football. It felt like football just wasn’t on their side from every possible angle. I honestly don’t know how they’ll ever forget this World Cup.