Ronaldo scores hat trick, Portugal draws 3-3 with Spain

Cristiano Ronaldo used the World Cup to show everyone he’s the GOAT.

Ronaldo rubbed his chin after scoring minutes into Portugal’s opener against Spain, implying he is the Greatest of All Time. Then he scored two more goals, including a perfectly placed 88th-minute free kick that gave his team a 3-3 draw Friday.

Russia draws 1-1 with South Korea in World Cup

Blundering Russia goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev was bailed out by teammate Alexander Kerzhakov in a 1-1 draw with South Korea in the World Cup on Tuesday that exposed both teams' deficiencies.

Akinfeev had already looked suspect in dealing with long-range shots before spilling Lee Keun-ho's speculative effort into his own net in the 68th minute, gifting South Korea the lead at the Arena Pantanal.

Mexico holds host Brazil to 0-0 draw at World Cup

He was called a hero and a savior by his Mexican teammates. His Brazilian opponents said he produced miracles. 

There is no doubt that Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa was the one responsible for spoiling Brazil's hopes of another World Cup victory at its home tournament. 

Ochoa made a series of outstanding saves to help his side hold Brazil to a thrilling 0-0 draw on Tuesday. 

Nigeria held 0-0 by Iran in World Cup's first draw

Nigeria and Iran delivered the first draw of the World Cup on Monday as they ground out a scrappy 0-0 stalemate in their opening match in Group F.

The draw at the Arena da Baixada in the southern Brazilian city of Curitiba followed 12 mostly high scoring and attacking games.

After a first half in which Nigeria failed to capitalize on its dominance, chances were few and far between in the second.

In the early passages of play, Nigeria had shown menace, with much of its attacking thrust coming down the left with Emmanuel Emenike and Victor Moses combining to cause problems for the defensively-minded Iran side.

Nigeria came closest to scoring in the seventh minute when an Ahmed Musa goal was disallowed after John Obi Mikel was adjudged to have fouled Iran goalkeeper Alireza Haghighi at a corner.

Iran grew more confident as the game progressed and came close to scoring in the 34th when a Reza Ghoochannejhad header required a sharp save from Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama.

In the second half, both sides were guilty of sloppy passages of play, to the growing annoyance of the mainly Brazilian crowd. Players from both sides snatched at chances, and neither goalkeeper was troubled despite some frantic late pressure in the final minutes.

"They had 11 people behind the ball, which made it hard for us to create chances," Mikel said. "It's frustrating because they sat back."

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi said his team became anxious when it failed to score during a dominant opening 25 minutes.

But he added: "Respect to Iran, they had their game plan to sit back and defend and they did well."

Keshi, who played for Nigeria at the 1994 World Cup, is already anticipating a backlash after the draw.

"Win or lose I'm criticized," said Keshi, whose side won last year's Africa Cup of Nations. "A draw now, I'll be criticized. It's part of the game. In my country, it's win at all costs and sometimes it doesn't go that way."

The best chance either side has to progress in the tournament is to beat debutant Bosnia-Herzegovina, as Argentina is the firm favorite to top the group. Lionel Messi scored one of the tournament's best goals in Argentina's 2-1 victory over the Bosnians on Sunday.

Iran coach Carlos Queiroz said the result was "fair" and that his players deserved "sympathy and respect" for performing on the biggest stage despite the impact of economic sanctions on the country - which made it difficult to arrange friendlies.

"We're not here to perform the role of the happy loser," Queiroz said. "The fans need to know the conditions we have endured for three years to get here."

Queiroz wouldn't talk about the team's next game against Argentina.

"Now I'm so tired just let me enjoy this point we collected from Nigeria," he said.

The draw means the winless World Cup runs of both teams continues, dating back to France 1998. For Iran, though, this was the first time it had not conceded a goal at the World Cup finals.   

(AP)