The greatest throw in World Cup history? Iran's Milad Mohammadi tries - and fails - somersault throw vs Spain

When the eyes of the world are upon you, there's an obvious temptation to throw convention out the window to try and make your mark.

With Iran trailing Spain 1-0 on Wednesday night deep into injury time, Milad Mohammadi looked as though he would go for the spectacular to try and unsettle a defence containing the likes of Gerard Pique and Sergio Ramos with a long throw.

The Iran defender - "renowned for his extraordinary speed and agility", according to Fifa's website - put that athleticism into action as he lined up to take a throw, kissed the ball, and proceeded to attempt a somersault throw-in.

Mohammad nailed the somersault, but unfortunately for Team Melli, the 24-year-old's balance was off and he was forced to abandon the acrobatics at the last moment before opting for the tried-and-tested method, as seen below.

Iran failed to score in the final 20 seconds of the game after Mohammadi had wasted about 30 seconds of the allotted four minutes of injury time,but the Iranian has been lauded and derided in equal measure on social media for his left-field approach to getting his nation back into the match.