Nigeria and Iran delivered the first draw and goalless game of the World Cup 2014

Nigeria and Iran played today and the results were really not encouraging, both teams scored 0 goals.

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 stages of the match Nigeria had shown menace, with much of its attacking thrust coming down the left from Emmanuel Emenike and Victor Moses causing problems for the defensively-minded Iran side.

Nigeria came close to scoring in the seventh minute when 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 Brazilian crowd. Players from both sides snatched at chances, and neither goalkeeper was troubled despite some frantic late pressure in the final minutes. Both sides must now look to beat tournament debutante Bosnia-Herzegovina in a group that most expect to be won by Argentina. Lionel Messi scored one of the tournament's best goals in Argentina's 2-1 victory over the Bosnia's on Sunday.

The result will be a disappointment for Nigeria, the current Africa Cup of Nations champion. Following a long slump, the team had been showing signs for some of the flair and power that had marked the country's football in the 1990's. For Iran, the result was greeted with relief by its noisy fans.

The draw means that the win less run of both teams continues. Neither side has won a match at the World Cup finals since France 1998