Iran coach Carlos Queiroz has likened his side's vital clash with Bosnia-Herzegovina to a World Cup final.

The Iranians must win in Salvador tonight and hope that Nigeria lose to Argentina if they want to reach the second round for the first time in their history.

"This is our World Cup final, it's as simple as that," Queiroz, 61, is quoted as saying by FIFA.com.

"We didn't come here to win the trophy, nobody expected that from Iran, but we raised our expectations and we raised our dreams. We want to play the match with one goal in mind - to fulfil our dream of reaching the last 16."

Iran head into this evening's match on the back of a narrow 1-0 defeat to Argentina last week.