Iran
New Zealand
🏆 Man of the Match: Elijah Just
Two goals. Historic night. And yet Elijah Just’s brace wasn’t enough as New Zealand settled for a 2-2 draw against Iran under the Los Angeles lights. But honestly? The result barely matters when you’re talking about what this man delivered on football’s biggest stage.
Just earned immortality as the All Whites’ first player with two goals in a World Cup match, and if you watched this match thinking Chris Wood would be New Zealand’s hero, you got your answer seven minutes in. In the 7th minute, Chris Wood unlocked the defense by holding up a long ball and feeding his teammates, setting up Just to unleash a clinical strike and open the scoring. That’s world-class finishing from a player who spent the season quietly tearing it up at Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership.
Then came the real magic. Elijah Just scored again in the 54th minute, restoring New Zealand’s lead after Ramin Rezaeian delivered a brilliant trivela cross in the 32nd minute, ghosting into the area to smash home the rebound and equalize for Iran. Two goals for the All Whites. Two moments of pure technical quality. Two reminders that this guy deserves to be playing at a higher level than he is.
The question isn’t whether Just was the World Cup MOM — it’s how is this man still at Motherwell and not at a Champions League club? Elijah Just is a professional footballer who operates as a midfielder and on the flank for Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership, and before the 2025-26 season, he moved to Motherwell in Scotland, and he scored seven goals in his first season. That’s excellent output for a winger in Scotland, but after tonight? Every scout in Europe should be scrambling.
⭐ Other Standout Players
Scored and assisted Mohammad Mohebbi as Iran poured forward in front of very vocal support in LA. The right-back was everywhere, delivering quality in attack while keeping New Zealand honest defensively.
Got the tying goal in the 64th minute, rescuing Iran from what would’ve been a disastrous opening defeat. Clinical finish when his team desperately needed him to deliver.
The veteran did what he does best — holding up play, bringing teammates into dangerous positions, and creating the space for Just to operate. Heading the ball in the box unmarked, Wood was unable to score the winning goal for New Zealand late on, but his link-up play was vital all night.
💬 Fan Mood Check
Elijah Just delivered history, but his heroic brace wasn’t enough to secure the first World Cup victory in All Whites history. Still, this is progress for a team that entered as the tournament’s lowest-ranked side.
Iran opened their already tumultuous 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign with a thrilling, end-to-end draw. They showed resilience coming back twice, but defensive lapses against the group’s weakest team won’t cut it against Belgium.
🔥 Hot Issues
The 2-2 draw leaves Group G completely deadlocked. With Belgium and Egypt playing to a 1-1 tie earlier Monday, Iran must now hunt for three points against the Red Devils on June 21. Every team in the group has one point — this is going to be chaos.
Where does Elijah Just play next season? He has already been linked with a big-money move to clubs in Scotland and beyond. After this performance, expect that speculation to go nuclear. Championship clubs should be all over this.
📊 The Bigger Picture
Let’s be real — New Zealand came into this World Cup as complete underdogs. New Zealand enters the tournament as a heavy underdog, a tag justified not only by their standing as the lowest-ranked nation in the 48-team field (No. 85 in the FIFA rankings) but also by their brutal recent form. They’re in their third World Cup ever, and they’ve never won a match at the tournament. Ever.
So when Elijah Just stepped up tonight and delivered not one but two absolute peaches, it wasn’t just about the goals. It was about belief. It was about proving that New Zealand belongs on this stage, even if the final whistle denied them the result they deserved.
Iran, meanwhile, have serious questions to answer. They have not made it beyond the first round in their six previous appearances, with their only three victories coming against the United States in 1998, Morocco in 2018 and Wales in 2022. They’re appearing at their fourth consecutive World Cup, but if they can’t beat New Zealand convincingly, how are they supposed to challenge Belgium or Egypt?
The tactical setup from both sides was interesting. New Zealand sat in a disciplined 4-2-3-1, with Max Crocombe in goal; Tim Payne, Finn Surman, Michael Boxall, Liberato Cacace; Joe Bell, Marko Stamenic; Callum McCowatt, Sarpreet Singh, Eli Just; Chris Wood starting for the All Whites. They weren’t trying to dominate possession — they couldn’t. But they were ruthless on the counter, and that’s exactly how Just got both his goals.
Iran had more of the ball, but they struggled to break down New Zealand’s compact shape until individual brilliance from Rezaeian changed the game. The early deficit rattled Iran, forcing goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand into several key saves to keep the match within reach. That’s not the composure you expect from a team with genuine World Cup ambitions.
All four goals came on the back of superbly worked moves, which tells you everything about the quality on display. This wasn’t some scrappy, defensive slog — both teams came to attack, and the SoFi Stadium crowd got their money’s worth.
🎯 What This Means for Group G
Group G is wide open. Belgium are still the favorites, but with Egypt holding them to a draw earlier in the day, suddenly this group looks like anyone’s game. Iran need to beat Belgium to have any realistic shot at advancing, and New Zealand? They’ve got Egypt next, and if they play like this again, they might just pull off one of the shocks of the tournament.
The Man of the Match award goes to Elijah Just, and it’s not even close. Two goals. History made. A performance that announced him to the world. If there’s any justice in football, scouts from across Europe were watching tonight, and Just’s phone is about to start ringing.
This is what the World Cup is all about — players stepping up when it matters most, creating moments that will be replayed for decades. Elijah Just just did that. Whether New Zealand advances or not, they’ve got their hero.
If Elijah Just is still playing at Motherwell next season, every Premier League recruitment team needs to be fired. This man just announced himself on the biggest stage in football, and someone better give him the move he deserves.