45+5 min Ali Nemati has the ball in the back of the net with a pinpoint header into the bottom corner. But the Iran defender had set off long before Ramin Rezaeian delivered a free kick into the penalty area. The flag goes up immediately for offside and the VAR check is barely worth considering.

45+3 min New Zealand have been finishing the first half stronger but Iran nudge the ball forward through a series of throw-ins. A long throw is sent into the six-yard where a flicked header sails over keeper Max Crocombe and on to the top of the net.

45+1 min New Zealand find space in the final third where Wood picks out Callum McCowatt in space on the right. The attack swings on to his favoured left boot but can’t get enough power into the shot. There will be six minutes of added time.

45 min Wood hooks the ball around the wall but there is not enough behind the free kick from long range and Beiranvand collects comfortably.

44 min New Zealand build and rebuild nicely from the back as they work their way down the left side. Shoja Khalilzadeh arrives late into a challenge on Liberato Cacace and Chris Wood lines up for a shot from the left side of the penalty area.

42 min Iran have an eye on half time with New Zealand allowed extra time on the ball in their own half.

40 min New Zealand press the Iran defence with the ball sent skyward in their own attacking half. A clash of heads leaves Mohammad Mohebi on the turf and needing attention.

39 min New Zealand move the ball through midfield with ease as Iran settle back and are content to see an early cross to sent toward Chris Wood. The attacker is outnumbered three-to-one inside the penalty area.

37 min A rare moment of calm on the pitch in Los Angeles as New Zealand pass the ball around their defensive line.

34 min New Zealand hardly needed to be sparked back to life but they are the first to attack after the restart with Wood again at the centre of the action.

A goal befitting an electrifying contest springs out of the chaos. Shahriar Moghanloo was the first to pick up the ball in a penalty-area scramble and get a shot away from close range but a blocked shot left it to Ramin Rezaeian to level the scores.

30 min The end-to-end action continues with Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand forced into a diving save before a shot sails over the New Zealand goal.

28 min The game picks up where it left off with Iran straight back into attack. Max Crocombe’s clearance is blocked by Mohammad Mohebi who collapses to ground grabbing at an ankle. VAR check whether there was sufficient contact inside the penalty area but the review is waved away.

New Zealand lead 1-0 against Iran as we reach the hydration break. The game has more than lived up to its billing as one of the must-watch matches of the group stage with chances at both ends and Eli Just fifth goal in his past six competitive matches for the All Whites separating the sides.

22 min Mehdi Taremi slams a shot into the post! Iran stream forward with a three-on-two against the New Zealand defence and the ball at their captain’s feet. Taremi fires away from outside the penalty area, beats the diving goalkeeper Max Crocombe and is only denied by the right post.

20 min Iran take control in the midfield to keep the New Zealand defence under pressure. There has been no let up in this game.

18 min Shahriar Moghanloo sets off to chase down a long ball into the penalty area with Finn Surman watching him closely. The defender gives the Iran striker a nudge as they come together. Iran call for a penalty but there was little in that as Moghanloo stays down and gives the players on both sides time to catch their breath.

17 min Iran finally win the ball back in defence and look to open up New Zealand on the counter. Iran have the pace up front to be a serious danger if the All Whites continue with their thoroughly entertaining all out attack.

15 min New Zealand pick out Chris Wood in the penalty area again. It is amazing how much space the centre-forward keeps finding. Wood swivels on to his right boot and shoots from close range but forward Shahriar Moghanloo dives desperately to get a boot in and perhaps save the day for Iran.

14 min New Zealand lock the ball forward for a series of throws. Marko Stamenić wins the second ball in the penalty area, swings wider on to his right boot, the shot is on target but can’t find a way through the sea of boots. The Iran defence looks rattled.

12 min Chris Wood creates something out of nothing again to pick a way through the Iran defence and find Sarpreet Singh hovering in space inside the penalty area. A step left then right almost opens up a sight on goal but Singh slices a hurried shot wide for a goal kick.

9 min The goal has taken the wind out of Iran’s sails as New Zealand settle into two defensive lines.

All Whites goalkeeper Max Crocombe launched the attack with a long ball to Chris Wood who was able to bring the ball under control despite being outnumbered by Iran defenders. Wood as a bullocking target was always likely to be the biggest concern for Iran and with New Zealand taking an early lead I suspect we’ll see much more of the same from here.

6 min Aria Yousefi fires in the first shot of the game after receiving the ball on the left side of the penalty area and cutting back on to his right foot. There wasn’t quite enough venom on the strike as goalkeeper Max Crocombe collected with ease.

4 min New Zealand are forced to defend again with Iran continuing to win the ball back in the midfield. The early exchanges have been frenetic but the All Whites look up for matching Iran’s physicality.

2 min Iran launch the ball back into attack where a tough challenge from New Zealand on the edge of the box clears the danger and is given the OK by the referee.

1 min An electric start from Iran as they quickly win the ball back from the kick-off and send it down the right and into the penalty box. The New Zealand defence clears under pressure.

New Zealand’s national anthem rings out next and we aren’t too far away from kick-off at Los Angeles Stadium. But if you have a moment to dive deep into the difficulties the Iran team has faced in the buildup to the tournament, head here …

Iran players are lined up for the national anthem, right hand across their heart as they sing along and cheers fill Los Angeles Stadium.

New Zealand coach Darren Bazeley has just explained that Matt Garbett has suffered World Cup heartbreak with a hamstring injury on the eve of the tournament. Logan Rogerson has taken his place in the squad.

It’s devastating news for Matt Garbett, he had a hamstring issue in training a couple of days ago, and when we went through all the medical stuff it turned out worse. It was a bad one …

We’ve got to rise to the occasion. We’ve to go out there and enjoy it. Give it everything and work together, work hard, work together and let’s have a great day.

Australia defender Kai Trewin was the next to benefit from the battle between social media influencers before the World Cup started, but Cabo Verde goalkeeper Vozinha did much of his own hard work with a stunning performance in the draw with Spain. From 50,000 followers before that game started, Vozinha now has more than 4.1 million people watching his Instagram account (including, it must be said, Guardian Sport).

New Zealand have enjoyed a much more settled buildup to the World Cup with the spotlight turning on to their unheralded Tim Payne rather than their participation at the tournament. The defender has become a social media sensation with more than 5.7 million followers on Instagram. Join the Tim Payne party or find out more about his newfound fame.

The Iran players and team staff have had an unusually difficult and disrupted buildup to the World Cup. Iran captain and striker Mehdi Taremi has said the controversy and disruption surrounding their involvement at the World Cup undermines Fifa’s message of peace and conceded he felt the tension before arriving in Los Angeles on the eve of their opener, hours before a peace deal was announced. For the first time since the competition’s inception, a host nation has received a country with which it is at war.

Alexander Abnos, the Guardian’s senior sports editor in the US, has a close on the buildup in Los Angeles …

There were scattered protests outside Los Angeles Stadium, but nothing that, from my vantage points, seem to have been especially disruptive. On the west side of the stadium, the most vocal show of protest is a man with a megaphone chanting that the Iranian team represents IRGC terrorists, free Iran, and other slogans in Farsi. I understand there is a larger gathering on the east side, numbering about 200 people.

The Iranian team has enjoyed strong support from Mexicans in Tijuana since they were forced to move training base from Tucson given fears over US visa issues. That has carried over to Los Angeles Stadium – there are a huge number of fans in green Mexico jerseys here, almost all of them chanting support for Iran. In the northern end of the stadium, one group have even unfurled a medium-size banner reading “Te amamos Iran!” (We love you, Iran).

There have now been five matches without defeat for Asian sides at this World Cup after the draw between Saudi Arabia and Uruguay. Jonathan Wilson had already pondered even before the game in Miami whether these are early signs that the continent is a rising force in football, with Iran out to add to the evidence when they face New Zealand.

AFC teams have in the past perhaps been guilty of lacking belief against Uefa sides, but no longer. Japan celebrated the equaliser as any side that has snatched a draw should, but the disappointment when they fell behind was clear. First and second in this group play second and first in the Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti group. It’s an indication of how far both Morocco and Japan have come that it’s not at all clear that it would be easier to face them than Brazil or the Netherlands.

Saudi Arabia have held on against a flurry of late attacks from Uruguay for a 1-1 draw in the Group H game in Miami. Uruguay pressed hard but just could not find a way through the Saudi Arabia defence.

Check complete: Surely one of the most bizarre stories to emerge from this World Cup so far – Australian video assistant referee Shaun Evans has been cleared by Fifa after after he was accused of making a hand gesture associated with white supremacists. An investigation found no evidence that Evans had breached Fifa’s ethics code and he issued a statement claiming he had been unaware of making the controversial hand sign:

The only explanation I can offer is that the movement was an involuntary, subconscious twitch and I was unaware I had done it at the time.

Matt Hughes’s full story is here:

And there’s a grandstand finish on the cards over in Miami, where Uruguay have just equalised with 10 minutes to go in their Group H game, having laid siege to the Saudi Arabia goal.

In the other Group G game earlier today, Egypt went close to securing a first World Cup win, but were ultimately thwarted by Romelu Lukaku, who came off the bench in the 66th minute and immediately forced an equaliser. Afterwards, Belgium coach Rudi Garcia neatly summed up the veteran striker’s impact:

Frankly, when you are the opponent and you see Romelu Lukaku entering the field, your confidence goes down and your anxiety increases.

Jeff Rueter was in Seattle to watch the game unfold: