Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Wednesday, Aug 05, 2026

Amid jubilation of historic win, Saudi Arabia begin preparations to face Poland Saturday

Amid jubilation of historic win, Saudi Arabia begin preparations to face Poland Saturday

Amid jubilation that reverberates within the Kingdom and all over the Arab world following Saudi Arabia’s stunning victory over Argentina in one of the biggest shocks in the World Cup’s history, the business is as usual for the Green Falcons.
The Saudi national squad members resumed their hectic training session on Wednesday at Sealine Resort Stadium under the supervision of Coach Herve Renard in preparation for their second game in Group C of the World Cup 2022.

The Saudi team will meet Poland on Saturday, Nov. 26. The Green Falcons then take on Mexico next Tuesday, Nov. 29 in the last match. Leading the training session on Wednesday, Renard expressed satisfaction with the session.

The Green Falcons will continue their preparations on Thursday with a training session at 4 pm, as it will be open to the media in the first quarter of an hour.

Meanwhile, midfielder Riyad Sharahili, who had suffered a muscle injury, continued his special training, accompanied by the medical staff. On the other hand, the medical examinations for the Saudi squad’s captain Salman Al-Faraj revealed that he had an injury to the shin bone after he was forced out of the match with Argentina. Renard said on Tuesday that Al-Faraj will not play in the remaining matches.

Both Poland and Mexico are probably still favorites against Saudi Arabia — despite the upset. Renard, the architect of Tuesday’s historic win, was fully aware of this reality and he is so cautious about the toughness of the forthcoming matches. This was manifested in his comments in the post-match press conference on Tuesday.

“We made history for Saudi football and it will stay forever. This is the most important, but we also need to think about looking forward because we still have two games that are very very difficult for us,” he said.

Renard said he asked his players to limit the celebration after the game to 20 minutes. “That’s all,” he said. “But there are still two games — or more.”

Saudi goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais, one of the star performers of Tuesday’s historic win, is also hopeful of continuing the winning streak against Poland and Mexico. “We have prepared ourselves. We were 100 percent ready and hopefully, we will have better results in the future.”

Al-Owais caught almost everything that came his way in the match at the packed Lusail Stadium and foiled numerous desperate attempts by Lionel Messi and his squad members to equalize the game in the last minutes. Despite trailing 1-0 at halftime after a 10th-minute goal from Messi, perhaps the greatest soccer player of all time, Saleh Alshehri and Salem Al-Dawsari managed to score a goal each early in the second half.

Many had expected the South American team, ranked third in the world, unbeaten for three years and among the favorites to lift the World Cup, to sweep aside its opponent, ranked 51st in the world and 48 places below Argentina in the world rankings.

Argentina dominated the first half and went ahead through Messi’s first-half penalty. But a stunning fight back from Saudi Arabia after the break saw Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari score in the span of five minutes to leave Argentina defeated for the first time since June 2019, a run of 36 incredible matches. It has been described as one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history as Al-Shehri and Al Dawsari’s brilliant quick-fire double secured them a huge win.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
AI Is Remaking the US Economy, From GDP Growth to iPhone Prices
FIFA’s Retreat Leaves a Larger Question Over Who Guards the Game
Finland Deploys Commercial-Scale Thermal Batteries Using Crushed Rock to Store Renewable Grid Energy
Valued at $109 Million: F-35B Fighter Jet Crashes in Southern California
US Says It Has Carried Out Heavy Strikes on Iran After Attempted Attacks on Its Forces
Over 24 Hours in the Air: Qantas Airbus Completes Record-Breaking Test Flight
Arrest Warrant Issued in Lebanon for Tycoon Spotted Meeting Netanyahu in Washington
Trump says Israel ‘would not survive’ without US
Nvidia Reportedly Takes Vast Texas Data-Centre Lease to Underwrite AI Expansion
FIFA’s Private-Investment Plan for World Cup Rights Draws European Revolt
Following OpenAI's Cyberattack: 'Most Companies Still Do Not Understand What Is Coming'
OpenAI Sued After ChatGPT Allegedly Discouraged Emergency Care Before Near-Fatal Embolism
Miliband Sets Climate and International Law at Centre of UK Diplomacy
Pentagon Discloses Nearly 100 US Troop Injuries During Renewed Iran Fighting
Trump Readies New Tariffs as Temporary Global Levy Nears Expiry
High Prices Push Coffee Drinkers Toward Whole Beans and Home Brewing
Trump Draws Boos and Podium Scrutiny at Spain’s World Cup Triumph
Spain Defeats Argentina in Extra Time to Win Second World Cup
Turkey Explores S-400 Transfer to UAE in Bid to Rejoin F-35 Program
US Retaliates Against Iran After Two American Troops Killed in Jordan
Proposed U.S.-Saudi Nuclear Pact Could Permit Limited Uranium Enrichment Under International Safeguards
Why Kentucky Fried Chicken Became KFC—and Why the False Explanations Persist
Iran Claims It Destroyed Bahrain’s Main Artificial Intelligence Center in Missile and Drone Strike
Ukrainian Drones Strike Wildberries Warehouses Deep Inside Russia
Reported CIA Mission Helped Clear the UAE’s Path to Advanced US AI Chips
Artificial Intelligence Capital Fuels Markets While Governments and Regulators Face Mounting Strategic Tests
China’s Moonshot’s Kimi K3 Narrows the Gap With Anthropic Through Scale, Openness and Lower Cost
The Ledger Will Not Trust on Faith
Passenger Bound for Germany Refused to Sit Beside a Woman on a Plane — Then Slapped a Flight Attendant
Ukraine’s Leadership Rift Spills Into the Streets as Protesters Target Army Chief
The Ten World Cup Finals That Defined Football History
Smartphones Are Getting More Expensive, Sales Are Collapsing, and Even Apple Admits: "Prices Will Rise"
Leadership Change and Strategic Rivalry Redraw the Political Map
The AI Race Enters Its Infrastructure Era
Britain Nationalises British Steel to Protect Scunthorpe Production and Strategic Supply
Thomas Tuchel Faces Fierce Backlash After Tactical Retreat Costs England World Cup Final Berth
A Quiet Bastille Day: France Grapples with World Cup Heartbreak and Leftover Fireworks
Spain in Ecstasy: "We Feel Unbeatable, We Taught the Whole World a Lesson"
Harvard Astrophysicist to Lead U.S. Scientific Advisory on Unidentified Aerial Phenomena
Emergency Sirens Activated Across Bahrain as Interior Ministry Issues Shelter Directives
World Cup Visitors Turn American Big-Box Stores Into Souvenir Stops
Netflix Weighs Always-On Channels, Bundles and Short-Form Video
The AI Invoice Shock: Layoffs Didn't Save Managers Money — They Cost Them More
Concern: Sexually Transmitted Bacterium Among Men Develops Antibiotic Resistance
Passenger Partially Pulled Out of Ryanair Jet After Cabin Window Fails Mid-Flight
Severe Heatwave Drives Dangerous Ground-Level Ozone Pollution Across Two Thirds of European Union
The Physical and Electronic Barriers Disrupting Domestic Wireless Networks
France and Morocco Open World Cup Quarter-Finals as Collina Defends Refereeing
Tech Pulse: The Future of AI and Screen Culture
Global News Briefing: Escalating Geopolitical Tensions and Corporate Shakeups
×