Qatar 2022 FIFA WC : Saudi Arabian pulls shocker, defeats Lionel Messi led Argentina in Group C.
Saudi Arabia produced one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history as they came from behind to beat the La Abiceleste of Argentina 2-1 in their Group C opener on Tuesday.
La Albiceleste, one of the favorites to win in Qatar 2022, got off to a strong start at Lusail Stadium and took the lead thanks to Lionel Messi’s penalty after 10 minutes.
Before halftime, three attempts by Lionel Scaloni’s team were disallowed for offside. Saudi Arabia pounced on this reprieve early in the second half, scoring three goals in a five-minute span.
Saleh Al Shehri pulled Herve Renard’s side level, before Salem Al Dawsari sealed a famous win soon after with a sumptuous strike from the edge of the penalty area.
Mohammed Al Owais denied Messi inside the opening two minutes but he was powerless to stop the superstar’s cool penalty after 10 minutes, the spot-kick given after Saud Abdulhamid had hauled down Leandro Paredes.
La Albiceleste twice thought they had extended their advantage before the half-hour mark, yet strikes from Messi and Lautaro Martinez were ruled out for offside.
Remarkably, Martinez had another effort chalked off for offside 10 minutes before the interval as Scaloni’s side looked to take full advantage of Saudi Arabia’s high defensive line.
Saudi Arabia pulled level with their first shot three minutes into the second half, Al Shehri powering past Cristian Romero and flashing a low shot into Emiliano Martinez’s far corner.
They completed an extraordinary turnaround just five minutes later when Al Dawsari cut inside from the left and whipped in a superb strike from 18 yards.
Messi had an effort cleared off the line in the closing stages as Saudi Arabia held on for a famous win against a side 48 places above them in the world rankings, despite a lengthy stoppage after Mohammed Al Burayk had taken a knee to the face from his own goalkeeper.
