Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand made a stunning 59th-minute save to secure a 0-0 draw against Belgium at the World Cup.
The match at Los Angeles Stadium saw Iran rely on their historic resilience, with a motivational video of past defensive moments inspiring the team.
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Midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh said the clip highlighted the aggressive closing down and dogged defending of this generation.
The save drew comparisons to Beiranvand's famous 2018 penalty stop against Cristiano Ronaldo.
Saman Ghoddos described the coincidence as crazy, linking the save directly to the video preparation.
"The same situation happened now," Ghoddos said.
"The unity, the fighting spirit we have for each other, for our country, for the people we try to win every game, try not to concede, and a situation like this can happen."
Iran historically suffered late heartbreaks in previous tournaments, but this defensive stand offers a potential turning point.
"In our last tournaments, Asian Cup, World Cups, [at the] last minute we didn't get what we deserved, now is one of those times," Jahanbakhsh said.
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"So it's really in our control to do what we have to do firstly for our people back home, and then for ourselves."
The match saw Belgium reduced to 10 men after Nathan Ngoy received a red card for fouling Mehdi Taremi.
Despite the numerical advantage and a disallowed offside goal by Taremi, Iran maintained their defensive structure.
"We know they deserve a lot, even the people who came to the stadium today with the different ideas, different ideology, different culture and from different cities in Iran," Jahanbakhsh said.
Beiranvand, who plays for Tractor, controlled the backline expertly while defender Shoja Khalilzadeh neutralized Romelu Lukaku.
Ghoddos praised the goalkeeper's prolonged impact: "He was amazing today, and it's been amazing for a couple of years now.
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He's the best goalkeeper in our history."
