2014 FIFA World Cup Group F

Group F of the 2014 FIFA World Cup consisted of Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran and Nigeria. Play began on 15 June and ended on 25 June 2014. The top two teams, Argentina and Nigeria, advanced to the round of 16.

Teams

Draw position	Team	Confederation	Method of qualification	Date of qualification	Finals appearance	Last appearance	Previous best performance	FIFA Rankings
								October 2013[nb 1]	June 2014	August 2014	October 2019
F1 (seed)	Argentina	CONMEBOL	CONMEBOL winners	10 September 2013	16th	2010	Winners (1978, 1986)	3	5	2	9
F2	Bosnia and Herzegovina	UEFA	UEFA Group G winners	15 October 2013	1st	—	—	16	21	19	48
F3	Iran	AFC	AFC Fourth Round Group A winners	18 June 2013	4th	2006	Group stage (1978, 1998, 2006)	49	43	48	27
F4	Nigeria	CAF	CAF Third Round winners	16 November 2013	5th	2010	Round of 16 (1994, 1998)	33	44	33	35

Notes

1. The rankings of October 2013 were used for seeding for the final draw.

Standings

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Argentina	3	3	0	0	6	3	+3	9	Advance to knockout stage
2	Nigeria	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	4
3	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3	1	0	2	4	4	0	3
4	Iran	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	1

Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria

• Argentina advanced to play Switzerland (runner-up of Group E) in the round of 16.
• Nigeria advanced to play France (winner of Group E) in the round of 16.

Matches

Argentina vs Bosnia and Herzegovina

The two teams had met in two previous matches, both in friendlies, most recently in 2013, both won by Argentina.[1]

Bosnia and Herzegovina conceded three minutes into their World Cup debut, when Lionel Messi's free kick from the left was flicked on by Marcos Rojo and bounced off Sead Kolašinac into the net for an own goal. In the second half, Messi played a one-two with substitute Gonzalo Higuaín and shot home from the edge of the penalty area with his left foot into the bottom-right corner.[2] With five minutes remaining in normal time, Bosnia and Herzegovina pulled one back, when Senad Lulić's pass found substitute Vedad Ibišević to score the country's first ever World Cup goal, shooting under the goalkeeper with his left foot.[3]

Kolašinac's own goal after two minutes and nine seconds broke the record for the fastest own goal in the history of the FIFA World Cup, surpassing Carlos Gamarra's own goal (two minutes and 46 seconds) in Paraguay's first group stage match against England at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.[4]

15 June 2014

19:00 UTC−3

Argentina	2–1	Bosnia and Herzegovina
Kolašinac  3' (o.g.) Messi  65'	Report	Ibišević  85'

Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro

Attendance: 74,738

Referee: Joel Aguilar (El Salvador)[5]

Argentina

Bosnia and Herzegovina

GK 1 Sergio Romero CB 3 Hugo Campagnaro  46' CB 17 Federico Fernández CB 2 Ezequiel Garay RWB 4 Pablo Zabaleta LWB 16 Marcos Rojo  25' RM 11 Maxi Rodríguez  46' CM 14 Javier Mascherano LM 7 Ángel Di María CF 10 Lionel Messi (c) CF 20 Sergio Agüero  87' Substitutions: FW 9 Gonzalo Higuaín  46' MF 5 Fernando Gago  46' MF 6 Lucas Biglia  87' Manager: Alejandro Sabella

GK 1 Asmir Begović RB 13 Mensur Mujdža  69' CB 3 Ermin Bičakčić CB 4 Emir Spahić (c)  63' LB 5 Sead Kolašinac DM 7 Muhamed Bešić DM 20 Izet Hajrović  71' RW 8 Miralem Pjanić AM 10 Zvjezdan Misimović  74' LW 16 Senad Lulić CF 11 Edin Džeko Substitutions: FW 9 Vedad Ibišević  69' MF 19 Edin Višća  71' MF 18 Haris Medunjanin  74' Manager: Safet Sušić

Man of the Match: Lionel Messi (Argentina) Assistant referees: William Torres (El Salvador) Juan Zumba (El Salvador) Fourth official: Djamel Haimoudi (Algeria) Fifth official: Abdelhalk Etchiali (Algeria)

Iran vs Nigeria

The two teams had met in one previous match, in the 1998 Lunar New Year Cup, won 1–0 by Nigeria.[6]

In a goalless game of few chances, Iran's Reza Ghoochannejhad forced a save from Vincent Enyeama in the first half, while Nigeria substitute Shola Ameobi headed wide in the second half.[7][8]

This was the first goalless match as well as the first draw of the tournament after the previous 12 matches all produced a winner, and was the longest wait for a draw in a single tournament since 1930, where there were no draws in the entire tournament.[9] This was also the first clean sheet kept by Iran in the World Cup.[10][11]

16 June 2014

16:00 UTC−3

Iran	0–0	Nigeria
	Report

Arena da Baixada, Curitiba

Attendance: 39,081

Referee: Carlos Vera (Ecuador)

Iran

Nigeria

GK 12 Alireza Haghighi RB 4 Jalal Hosseini CB 5 Amir Hossein Sadeghi CB 15 Pejman Montazeri LB 23 Mehrdad Pooladi CM 2 Khosro Heydari  89' CM 14 Andranik Teymourian  75' AM 6 Javad Nekounam (c) RF 21 Ashkan Dejagah  73' CF 16 Reza Ghoochannejhad LF 3 Ehsan Hajsafi Substitutions: FW 9 Alireza Jahanbakhsh  73' MF 7 Masoud Shojaei  89' Manager: Carlos Queiroz

GK 1 Vincent Enyeama (c) RB 5 Efe Ambrose CB 13 Juwon Oshaniwa CB 14 Godfrey Oboabona  29' LB 22 Kenneth Omeruo CM 17 Ogenyi Onazi CM 15 Ramon Azeez  69' CM 10 John Obi Mikel RW 11 Victor Moses  52' LW 7 Ahmed Musa CF 9 Emmanuel Emenike Substitutions: DF 2 Joseph Yobo  29' FW 23 Shola Ameobi  52' FW 8 Peter Odemwingie  69' Manager: Stephen Keshi

Man of the Match: John Obi Mikel (Nigeria) Assistant referees: Christian Lescano (Ecuador) Byron Romero (Ecuador) Fourth official: Wilmar Roldán (Colombia) Fifth official: Humberto Clavijo (Colombia)

Argentina vs Iran

The two teams had met in one previous match, in a friendly in 1977, won on penalties by Argentina after a 1–1 draw .[12]

In a match where Argentina dominated in terms of possession and shots,[13] they scored the only goal one minute into second half injury time when Lionel Messi received a pass from Ezequiel Lavezzi on the right wing, dribbled inside and curled a left-footed shot past the outstretched hands of the Iranian keeper Alireza Haghighi.[14] Before the goal, Iran had chances to score, but Argentina goalkeeper Sergio Romero was able to save Ashkan Dejagah's header and Reza Ghoochannejhad's shot, and Dejagah also had a penalty appeal turned down when Argentina defender Pablo Zabaleta tackled him in the area but only just got his toe to the ball.[15] With the win, Argentina were guaranteed to advance to the knockout stage.

21 June 2014

13:00 UTC−3

Argentina	1–0	Iran
Messi  90+1'	Report

Estádio Mineirão, Belo Horizonte

Attendance: 57,698

Referee: Milorad Mažić (Serbia)

Argentina

Iran

GK 1 Sergio Romero RB 4 Pablo Zabaleta CB 17 Federico Fernández CB 2 Ezequiel Garay LB 16 Marcos Rojo CM 5 Fernando Gago CM 14 Javier Mascherano CM 7 Ángel Di María  90+4' RF 10 Lionel Messi (c) CF 9 Gonzalo Higuaín  76' LF 20 Sergio Agüero  76' Substitutions: FW 18 Rodrigo Palacio  76' FW 22 Ezequiel Lavezzi  76' MF 6 Lucas Biglia  90+4' Manager: Alejandro Sabella

GK 12 Alireza Haghighi RB 4 Jalal Hosseini CB 5 Amir Hossein Sadeghi CB 15 Pejman Montazeri LB 23 Mehrdad Pooladi DM 14 Andranik Teymourian DM 6 Javad Nekounam (c)  53' RM 21 Ashkan Dejagah  85' CM 7 Masoud Shojaei  73'  76' LM 3 Ehsan Hajsafi  88' CF 16 Reza Ghoochannejhad Substitutions: DF 2 Khosro Heydari  76' MF 9 Alireza Jahanbakhsh  85' MF 8 Reza Haghighi  88' Manager: Carlos Queiroz

Man of the Match: Lionel Messi (Argentina) Assistant referees: Milovan Ristić (Serbia) Dalibor Đurđević (Serbia) Fourth official: Norbert Hauata (Tahiti) Fifth official: Aden Range (Kenya)

Nigeria vs Bosnia and Herzegovina

The two teams had never met before.[16]

Bosnia and Herzegovina thought they had taken the lead when Edin Džeko put the ball into the net, but his effort was ruled out for offside, which replays later showed to be an incorrect decision.[17] Referee Peter O'Leary later admitted Džeko's goal was disallowed in error.[18] Seven minutes later, Nigeria took the lead when Emmanuel Emenike burst past Emir Spahić to cross for Peter Odemwingie to score, firing in through the legs of Asmir Begovic. Džeko came closest to scoring the equaliser to keep his team's qualification chances alive, but his shot in second-half stoppage time was deflected onto the post by Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama. Nigeria held for the win and eliminated Bosnia and Herzegovina as a result.[19]

21 June 2014

18:00 UTC−4

Nigeria	1–0	Bosnia and Herzegovina
Odemwingie  29'	Report

Arena Pantanal, Cuiabá

Attendance: 40,499

Referee: Peter O'Leary (New Zealand)

Nigeria

Bosnia and Herzegovina

GK 1 Vincent Enyeama RB 5 Efe Ambrose CB 2 Joseph Yobo (c) CB 13 Juwon Oshaniwa LB 22 Kenneth Omeruo CM 17 Ogenyi Onazi CM 10 John Obi Mikel  81' RW 7 Ahmed Musa  65' AM 8 Peter Odemwingie LW 18 Michel Babatunde  75' CF 9 Emmanuel Emenike Substitutions: FW 23 Shola Ameobi  65' MF 3 Ejike Uzoenyi  75'   Manager: Stephen Keshi

GK 1 Asmir Begović RB 13 Mensur Mujdža CB 15 Toni Šunjić CB 4 Emir Spahić (c) LB 18 Haris Medunjanin  6'  64' DM 8 Miralem Pjanić DM 7 Muhamed Bešić RW 20 Izet Hajrović  57' AM 10 Zvjezdan Misimović LW 16 Senad Lulić  58' CF 11 Edin Džeko Substitutions: FW 9 Vedad Ibišević  57' MF 23 Sejad Salihović  58' MF 14 Tino-Sven Sušić  64' Manager: Safet Sušić

Man of the Match: Peter Odemwingie (Nigeria) Assistant referees: Jan-Hendrik Hintz (New Zealand) Mark Rule (New Zealand) Fourth official: Roberto Moreno (Panama) Fifth official: Eric Boria (United States)

Nigeria vs Argentina

The two teams had met in six previous matches, including three times in the FIFA World Cup group stage, all won by Argentina (1994: 2–1; 2002: 1–0; 2010: 1–0).[20]

Before the match, Nigeria were the only team yet to concede in the tournament, but their defence were breached inside three minutes when Ángel Di María's shot hit the post and Lionel Messi slammed home the rebound. Nigeria, which would qualify for the knockout stage if they gained a point or if Iran failed to beat Bosnia and Herzegovina in the other match, equalised within a minute, when Michel Babatunde fed Ahmed Musa, and he cut inside and curled the ball into the net.[21] Messi put Argentina in front in first half injury time with a direct free kick, but Musa equalised once again early in the second half, after playing a one-two with Emmanuel Emenike and scored. Argentina, which needed only a point to win the group, then scored the game winner when a corner from Ezequiel Lavezzi was flicked on by an Ezequiel Garay header and Marcos Rojo scored with his knee. Argentina won the group with a perfect record of three wins out of three, while Nigeria were able to qualify as group runners-up despite losing as Iran also lost to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the other match.[22]

Musa became the first Nigerian player to score more than once in a World Cup match.[23]

25 June 2014

13:00 UTC−3

Nigeria	2–3	Argentina
Musa  4', 47'	Report	Messi  3', 45+1' Rojo  50'

Estádio Beira-Rio, Porto Alegre

Attendance: 43,285

Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)

Nigeria

Argentina

GK 1 Vincent Enyeama RB 5 Efe Ambrose CB 2 Joseph Yobo (c) CB 13 Juwon Oshaniwa  51' LB 22 Kenneth Omeruo  49' CM 17 Ogenyi Onazi CM 10 John Obi Mikel RW 7 Ahmed Musa LW 18 Michel Babatunde  66' SS 8 Peter Odemwingie  80' CF 9 Emmanuel Emenike Substitutions: FW 20 Michael Uchebo  66' FW 19 Uche Nwofor  80' Manager: Stephen Keshi

GK 1 Sergio Romero RB 4 Pablo Zabaleta CB 17 Federico Fernández CB 2 Ezequiel Garay LB 16 Marcos Rojo RM 5 Fernando Gago CM 14 Javier Mascherano LM 7 Ángel Di María AM 10 Lionel Messi (c)  63' CF 9 Gonzalo Higuaín  90' CF 20 Sergio Agüero  38' Substitutions: FW 22 Ezequiel Lavezzi  38' MF 19 Ricky Álvarez  63' MF 6 Lucas Biglia  90' Manager: Alejandro Sabella

Man of the Match: Lionel Messi (Argentina) Assistant referees: Renato Faverani (Italy) Andrea Stefani (Italy) Fourth official: Svein Oddvar Moen (Norway) Fifth official: Kim Haglund (Norway)

Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Iran

The two teams had met in five previous matches, all in friendlies, most recently in 2009.[24]

Bosnia and Herzegovina, which had already been eliminated, led 1–0 at half-time through a goal by Edin Džeko, shooting low with his left foot after he received a pass from Miralem Pjanić. Pjanić extended the lead in the second half when he slotted low past the goalkeeper, after receiving a through ball from Tino-Sven Sušić. Iran, which had to win and also hoped Nigeria lost to Argentina to have any chance for qualification to the knockout stage, reduced the deficit after Reza Ghoochannejhad tapped home from close range from a Javad Nekounam cross.[25] However, Bosnia and Herzegovina scored a third goal when Avdija Vršajević slotted home with his right foot after Sejad Salihović played him in on the right, sealing their first win in World Cup finals history, and also confirming Iran's elimination, meaning that they failed to advance to the knockout stage for all four of their World Cup campaigns.[26]

With Ghoochannejhad's goal for Iran, the 2014 World Cup became the first since 1998 in which every participating team managed to score at least once.[27]

25 June 2014

13:00 UTC−3

Bosnia and Herzegovina	3–1	Iran
Džeko  23' Pjanić  59' Vršajević  83'	Report	Ghoochannejhad  82'

Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador

Attendance: 48,011

Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (Spain)

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Iran

GK 1 Asmir Begović RB 2 Avdija Vršajević CB 15 Toni Šunjić CB 4 Emir Spahić (c) LB 5 Sead Kolašinac CM 8 Miralem Pjanić CM 7 Muhamed Bešić  78' RW 21 Anel Hadžić  61' LW 14 Tino-Sven Sušić  79' CF 11 Edin Džeko  85' CF 9 Vedad Ibišević Substitutions: DF 6 Ognjen Vranješ  61' MF 23 Sejad Salihović  79' FW 19 Edin Višća  85' Manager: Safet Sušić

GK 12 Alireza Haghighi RB 4 Jalal Hosseini CB 5 Amir Hossein Sadeghi CB 15 Pejman Montazeri LB 23 Mehrdad Pooladi CM 6 Javad Nekounam (c) CM 14 Andranik Teymourian RW 21 Ashkan Dejagah  68' AM 7 Masoud Shojaei  46' LW 3 Ehsan Hajsafi  63' CF 16 Reza Ghoochannejhad Substitutions: MF 2 Khosro Heydari  46' FW 9 Alireza Jahanbakhsh  63' FW 10 Karim Ansarifard  88'  68' Manager: Carlos Queiroz

Man of the Match: Edin Džeko (Bosnia and Herzegovina) Assistant referees: Roberto Alonso (Spain) Juan Carlos Yuste (Spain) Fourth official: Enrique Osses (Chile) Fifth official: Carlos Astroza (Chile)

References

1. "2014 FIFA World Cup – Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 18. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 June 2014.
2. Wilson, Jonathan (16 June 2014). "Lionel Messi's sparkle returns to secure Argentina victory over Bosnia". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
3. Sanghera, Mandeep (15 June 2014). "World Cup: Argentina 2-1 Bosnia-Hercegovina". BBC Sport.
4. Janela, Mike (2 July 2014). "World Cup records fall in Brazil as tournament reaches the quarterfinals". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
5. "Referee designations for matches 9-11" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 13 June 2014.
6. "2014 FIFA World Cup – Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 June 2014.
7. Chowdhury, Saj (16 June 2014). "Iran 0-0 Nigeria". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
8. Lowe, Sid (16 June 2014). "Nigeria and Iran lower World Cup pulse with forgettable goalless draw". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
9. Masefield, Fraser (16 June 2014). "World Cup - Bore draw does nothing for Iran or Nigeria". Yahoo! Sport. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
10. "Haghighi: Iran excel in tough situations". FIFA. 21 June 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
11. Delaney, Miguel (17 June 2014). "Iran 0 Nigeria 0 match report: Unlucky 13 for World Cup as Carlos Queiroz masterminds first stalemate of tournament". The Independent. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
12. "2014 FIFA World Cup – Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 June 2014.
13. Ornstein, David (21 June 2014). "World Cup: Argentina 1-0 Iran". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
14. "Argentina 1 Iran 0". theguardian.com.
15. "Should Iran have had a penalty for Pablo Zabaleta's foul on Ashkan Dejagah in the box?". metro.co.uk.
16. "2014 FIFA World Cup – Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 35. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 June 2014.
17. Wilson, Jonathan (22 June 2014). "Nigeria's Peter Odemwingie sends Bosnia-Herzegovina out of World Cup". The Observer. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
18. Theunissen, Matthew (9 November 2014). "Death threat ref's international return". nzherald.co.nz. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
19. Oscroft, Tim (21 June 2014). "World Cup: Nigeria 1-0 Bosnia". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
20. "2014 FIFA World Cup – Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 46. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 June 2014.
21. Lowe, Sid (25 June 2014). "Lionel Messi hits double in Argentina win but Nigeria go through too". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
22. Chowdhury, Saj (25 June 2014). "Nigeria 2-3 Argentina". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
23. Okeleji, Oluwashina (26 June 2014). "World Cup 2104: Musa revels in Nigerian goals record". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
24. "2014 FIFA World Cup – Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 47. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 June 2014.
25. Wilson, Paul (25 June 2014). "Iran slump out of World Cup with disappointing defeat to Bosnia". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
26. Woodcock, Ian (25 June 2014). "World Cup: Bosnia-Hercegovina 3-1 Iran". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
27. "Copa do Mundo tem gols de todas seleções pela primeira vez desde 1998". UOL Copa (in Portuguese). São Paulo: Grupo Folha. 25 June 2014. Retrieved 25 June 2014.

External links

• 2014 FIFA World Cup Group F, FIFA.com