SARANSK, Russia -- Cristiano Ronaldo's missed penalty kick cost Portugal first place in its World Cup group.
It could have been worse if not for Ricardo Quaresma, who started for the first time in the tournament and scored his maiden World Cup goal with a shot that had about as much flare as any in the tournament.
Portugal finished second in Group B after a 1-1 draw with Iran on Monday. The 2016 European champions will next face Uruguay on Saturday in the round of 16.
"The conclusion and the most important thing is we're going to continue playing," Portugal coach Fernando Santos said. "We had a strong opponent."
Quaresma became the only player other than Ronaldo to score for the Portuguese in three games in Russia. The 34-year-old midfielder also became Portugal's oldest scorer in World Cup play by hitting a curling shot from the edge of the penalty area that went beyond the reach of diving Iran goalkeeper Ali Beiranvand.
Ronaldo -- who had scored all four Portugal goals in its first two games of Group B play -- was denied on his penalty by Beiranvand's dive toward the right post in the second half.
"We were on top of the game until the penalty, and we didn't make it. It wasn't perfect, but that's football," Santos said. "We did what was expected and now we have to settle down and think about Uruguay."
Karim Ansarifard scored a late penalty for Iran, which need to win to advance, but couldn't break through a second time despite a furious charge in the waning minutes. The Mordovia arena momentarily vibrated from the sound of Iran fans' roars when Mehdi Taremi hit the side of the net from 6 yards out.
The penalty against Portugal was awarded after a video review showed a handball in the area. But although Iran coach Carolos Queiroz benefited from that review, he railed against the system for the second day in a row. In particular, he cited a decision to give Ronaldo a yellow card after his elbow struck Iran defender Morteza Pouraliganji in the face in the second half.
"Elbow is a red card in the rules," Queiroz asserted in English, adding that there are no written exceptions for players named Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. "The decisions, they must be clear for everybody, for the people. Everybody agrees that VAR is not going well. That's the reality. There are a lot of complaints."
Spain won Group B after its 2-2 draw with Morocco. Both Spain and Portugal had a goal difference of plus-1, but Spain scored six goals in its three group matches while Portugal had five.
Spain will next face host Russia on Sunday in Moscow.
Ronaldo smiled confidently as he walked past reporters after the game, but avoided answering questions. He has now missed six of his last 14 penalty kicks, but he hasn't been the only big star to miss one in this tournament. Messi also was denied in Argentina's opening draw against Iceland.
Ronaldo's penalty was awarded after the use of video review following an apparent takedown of the Portugal forward by Saeid Ezatolahi in the area. The Iranian team, already aggrieved by the replay system overturning a goal against Spain, reacted angrily. Players swarmed Paraguayan referee Enrique Caceres, who initially had waved play on after Ronaldo went down.
At a glance
MONDAY’S GAMES
Uruguay 3, Russia 0
Saudi Arabia 2, Egypt 1
Portugal 1, Iran 1
Morocco 2, Spain 2
TODAY’S GAMES All times Central
Denmark vs. France, 9 a.m.
Australia vs. Peru, 9 a.m.
Nigeria vs. Argentina, 1 p.m.
Iceland vs. Croatia, 1 p.m.
Sports on 06/26/2018