Carlos Queiroz has said that he is proud of his Iran team for their resolute performance in the slender 1-0 defeat to Argentina in the World Cup.

The Middle Eastern outfit were minutes away from earning a hard-fought point against one of the pre-tournament favourites in Belo Horizonte this evening.

However, Lionel Messi came to the fore in timely fashion and fired an injury-time winner to send Alejandro Sabella's side into the last 16.

"I'm proud of my players because we competed for the whole 90 minutes," he told FIFA.com at full time.

"We tried to deny them space when they attacked, but then I put two strikers on because we wanted to win and you have to take risks if you want to do that.

"The fact is, though, that Messi can change games just like that. He kept looking and looking and in the end he got his reward."

The Iranians conclude their campaign by facing Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday.