Tuesday, November 22, 2022 – 5:09 PM
Doha, November 22, WAM/ The Saudi national football team achieved one of the big surprises in the world of football, defeating its Argentine counterpart 2-1 today in the opening matches of Group C in the first round of the 2022 World Cup.
In today’s match, the Saudi national team presented one of its strongest matches in the World Cup tournaments, especially in the second half, overturning its delay with a goal in the first half to a valuable victory in the second.
The Saudi national team inflicted its first defeat on its Argentine counterpart since 2019, as the team’s defeat came today following 35 matches in which it kept its record undefeated since its loss to the Brazilian national team in July 2019.
The famous Argentine star, Lionel Messi, presented his team with an early goal from a penalty kick in the 10th minute, but the Saudi national team responded strongly in the second half, armed with great public support, and scored two goals through Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dosari in the 49th and 53rd minutes.
The victory is the fourth for the Saudi national team in the history of its participation in the World Cup tournaments, noting that it is participating in the tournament for the sixth time.
In its first participation in the 1994 World Cup in the United States, the Saudi national team won two consecutive matches over its Moroccan and Belgian counterparts in the first round of the tournament, which granted it a qualification visa for the second round.
In the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the team achieved its third victory by defeating its Egyptian counterpart, before achieving today one of the big surprises by defeating the Argentine national team, one of the strong candidates to win the title in the current World Cup.
The Argentine national team showed some superiority during the first half, thanks to the difference in experience, while playing the match with all its main stars, and this translated into the goal of progress.
But the Saudi team showed its strong level in the second half and was the best in many periods and turned the result in his favor, while Messi and his companions failed to respond throughout the second half, so the meeting ended with a precious victory for Saudi Arabia in this difficult group, which also includes the Mexican and Polish teams.
Zakaria Mohieldin / Ahmed Zahran