Several weeks of preparations were over, and it was time for Bert van Marwijk's Australia side to demonstrate their worth as they opened their 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign against France. A resilient defensive display was on show but two second-half strikes were enough for Les Blues to walk away with the three points.

Having scored three goals in as many matches in their last FIFA World Cup, the Socceroos opened their account courtesy of a Mile Jedinak penalty kick, but more attacking impetus will be required if they are to advance to the next round.

Antoine Griezmann scored from the first VAR-assisted penalty awarded in the history of the FIFA World Cup as title hopefuls France battled to a 2-1 win in Kazan.

Griezmann, expected to make a huge impact on Russia 2018 after topping the Euro 2016 scorers with six goals, was left frustrated by a solid Socceroos defensive display in a tight first half.

Team Melli showed lots of grit and determination to overcome a talented Morocco side in their opening match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign on Friday.

Having not been able to create many chances, IR Iran were made to wait until the dying seconds to grab a winner as Ehsan Hajsafi's cross from a free-kick was sent into the back of the net by Bouhaddouz's misdirected flying header.

The Portuguese coach, leading Team Melli in the FIFA World Cup for the second time running, credited the players for a hard-fought win. IR Iran were made to wait until the final minute of added time to find a winner through an own goal from Moroccan defender Aziz Bouhaddouz.

“This win was the result of hard work, intelligent cohesion and a great attitude from the players,” said Queiroz, following the team’s first FIFA World Cup win since 1998.

Morocco dominated for extended spells at Kretsovsky Stadium, but resilient defending from the Iranians helped keep a clean sheet, before delivering the killer blow in the dying seconds after Ehsan Hajsafi curled in a free-kick from the left flank that Bouhaddouz headed past his own goalkeeper.

Aware that Sweden will pose a stiff challenge and chances could be at a premium, head coach Shin Tae-yong has had his players working on set-pieces behind closed doors.

This has been ongoing since Shin named the 23-player squad and such is his desire for the element of surprise that the Korea Republic coach decided against using any of the set-pieces in the friendly against Senegal last week, despite it being played behind closed doors.

Wasteful finishing looked to have consigned this compelling contest at the Saint Petersburg Stadium to a goalless draw but Bouhaddouz's mistake in injury-time means Iran emerge as the early challengers to Spain and Portugal in Group B.

When Bouhaddouz nodded in at the near post, IR Iran's substitutes could not resist rushing onto the field and when the final whistle blew moments later they were sprinting over again in delight.

Morocco should at least take heart from a blistering first half an hour, during which their zip and zest deemed them virtually unplayable. But Hakim Ziyach, Ayoub El Kaabi and Mehdi Benatia all failed to capitalise.

Juan Antonio Pizzi's side dominated possession and passed the ball accurately throughout the match but their lack of urgency meant they could not bring the ball into the final third and failed to record a single shot on target all night.

Defensively, the Green Falcons were far from their best as they allowed Russia to physically dominate and score at will despite not spending extended spells of time in the Saudi defensive third.