Group B of the World Cup culminated in some crazy moments Monday night, producing the kind of unpredictable and unthinkable drama in which this tournament specializes.

The result – Spain and Portugal clinched their place in the round of 16 – could have been as expected, but the way they got there was anything but.

And, at the end of all this, Cristiano Ronaldo was left to reflect on the fact that he had been eliminated from the Iranian competition after perhaps being cost his best chance of winning the major title of his CV. .

Ronaldo did not experience his best evening in Saransk, but for most of the evening, it did not seem that it would not matter.

Indeed, while the best player in the world was trying to convert a penalty in the 53rd minute, which would have allowed Portugal to raise the score to 2-0, more and more people thought that it could reach the goal of the tournament at five. could have an impact on the qualification scenario.

But Ronaldo missed him, Iranian goalkeeper Ali Beiranvand holding up his courage, waiting for his time, and finally guessing correctly, moving to his left to restrain the tame effort of the Real Madrid star.

At the end of the match, Spain lost, surprisingly, against Morocco in Kaliningrad, which means that Portugal was not only sure in terms of place in the round of 16, but that it was not surprising. he seemed just as sure to win the first place in the group. .

Yet everything started to dissolve into chaos. Referee Enrique Caceres took a tour on the video monitor to see if a Ronaldo elbow on Iranian defender Morteza Pouraliganji was enough to justify a red card. Caceres settled on a yellow, but Portugal seemed shaken.

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In the 90th minute, Portuguese Cédric Soares handled the ball in the penalty box, sending Caceres back to the screen, before giving Iran a penalty kick. Just before Karim Ansarifard turns nervously, Iago Aspas lashes out on the late equalizer of Spain, relegating Portugal to second place in Group B.

And suddenly, even that was no longer safe. A few seconds after the start of the game, Iran made a leap forward, the ball went around and Mehdi Taremi, a young striker who plays in the Persian Gulf League, found the ball and fate at his feet.

The moment was there, the future of the tournament in Portugal and a moment when the history of Iranian football was there to snatch it, but that was too much. Taremi fired wide, and Portugal survived.

But for how long? When Ronaldo finally won his first international trophy with his national team two years ago at the European Championships, he came through a very juicy route through the knockout rounds.

In this tournament, one side of the table grabbed most of the favorites, while the other half featured a lot of enterprising parvenus – plus Portugal, who had waded into the group with three ties.

This World Cup looks to evolve in the same way. There are still a few group games to play, but it is quite possible that France, Argentina's Lionel Messi, five-time champion of Brazil, Germany champion, reborn England and now Portugal are all in the same half.

On the other hand, Spain – thanks to the latest shivers – is now the beneficiary of a potential draw. The Spaniards will face Russia, which has exceeded all expectations after entering the event as the lowest-ranked team. It will not be easy because the match will be played in front of a noisy and passionate house in the favorite stadium of the host country, Luzhniki stadium in Moscow.

Still, it is better still than to attack Uruguay, which is Portugal's immediate task. Uruguay gave the Russians their first defeat, scoring three goals in the process, earlier on Monday.

Ronaldo won everything that was worth winning at club level, first with Manchester United and then with Real Madrid, in addition to a huge collection of individual honors. He won the European Championship with his country in 2016. At age 33, it may be Ronaldo's last chance to win the World Cup.

That could have been his best chance as well, but instead of going for one of the favorites, Portugal now has a row of murderers in its path.