A double substitution at the start of the second half was the key to victory as Mexico overcame a resilient Iran to notch up the perfect start to their 2006 World Cup campaign.

Ricardo La Volpe's team scored two goals in the final 14 minutes to earn the 3-1 victory over the Asian side, a result that leaves them top of Group C after the first round of matches.

It was the introduction of midfield duo Zinha and Claudio Perez for Gerardo Torrado and Guillermo Franco at the start of the second half that swung the momentum back towards the Mexicans following an opening 45 minutes in which Iran had dominated.

Branko Ivankovic's team had pulled themselves level with Yahya Golmohammadi's effort nine minutes from the interval after Omar Bravo had given Mexico the lead in the 28th minute.

But it was the Iranians who were dictating the pace of the game through central midfield pairing Andranik Teymourian and Javad Nekounam.

With former Asian Player of the Year Mehdi Mahdavikia creating chances and Vahid Hashemian a constant threat, the Iranians looked odds-on to pick up at least a point as the half-time whistle sounded.

However, the Mexicans seized the initiative in the second period and, with 14 minutes to go, the relentless pressure paid off when Zinha set up Bravo for his second of the day and, just three minutes later, Zinha headed home to seal Mexico's victory.

"I think that the substitutes made a big change in the way the team started to function, not just because we had more possession but because the team was very well placed," said La Volpe.

"Sometimes you have to wait until the first half is over to put these things in order.

"Perhaps after 20 minutes we should have made the changes because we went in at half-time and the team was nervous.

"In the second half Rafael Marques was able to move around a lot more and the substitutes were perfect. The team was better organised. With the way the game was going, the changes we made meant the team was more positive."

La Volpe paid tribute to Zinha, who started on the bench after only recently recovering from a knee injury.

"He's got a lot of talent, he knows how to make that final pass and this will be good for him mentally," said the Argentinean coach. "This will put him more at ease and that is good for him."