Argentina vs Saudi Arabia LIVE: World Cup 2022 result and reaction as Saudi Arabia claim stunning shock win
Argentina 1-2 Saudi Arabia: Lionel Messi scored early on but a stunning comeback ensured an all-time great World Cup shock
Saudi Arabia beat Argentina to record one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history with a 2-1 win over Lionel Messi’s side thanks to a scintillating second-half comeback.
On his fifth and final quest for the only major trophy to elude him, the 35-year-old Messi scored a 10th-minute penalty in a dominant first-half display where he and Lautaro Martinez also had three goals disallowed for offside.
But Saudi Arabia, the second-lowest ranked team in the tournament after Ghana, threw caution to the wind at the start of the second half, charging at Argentina’s defence in front of a frenzied 88,012 crowd.
Saleh Al-Shehri squeezed in a low shot in the 48th minute while Salem Al-Dawsari curled in a scorching strike from the edge of the penalty area in the 53rd minute to leave Argentina and Messi looking utterly shell-shocked in the Group C opener. Despite plenty of possession after that, Argentina were unable to best Saudi Arabia, who were competing in their sixth World Cup but had never previously won an opening game.
Relive all the action with our live blog below:
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
67 mins: Slimane comes OFF for Tunisia, with Sliti replacing him.
Tempo of the game has gone down a notch here... will we get a late winner?
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
64 mins: Denmark making a triple-change here!
Simon Kjaer is off, passing the captain’s armband to Christian Eriksen.
Jensen, Cornelius and Lindstrom ON; Dolberg and Skov Olsen the other men OFF.
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
60 mins: Denmark have livened up suddenly.
Skov Olsen looks to be the man who makes things happen - his cross is only just headed behind by a Tunisia defender.
Denmark can’t win the first ball at the corner though...
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
55 mins: Andreas Skov Olsen thinks he’s given Denmark the lead as he strikes home... but there’s an offside earlier in the build-up! It is clear, in fairness.
A let-off for Tunisia!
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
53 mins: Denmark can’t clear their lines at the moment!
Two corners in a row have led to Tunisia shots deflected behind... can the Africans find a way through?
The third corner of the bunch is poor, not beating the first man.
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
51 mins: Aïssa Laïdouni has been the star man so far! He breaks terrifically through on goal after a one-two but he just runs out of steam as he attempts to play it across for a team-mate!
Tunisia again threatening....
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
50 mins: Tunisia have started this half how they left off - their intensity remains high while Denmark struggle to fashion a clear opening!
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
SECOND-HALF: No changes at the break - we’re back underway at the Education City Stadium!
Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
HALF-TIME: All-square at the break at the Education City Stadium - and Tunisia will be the happier of the two teams!
Denmark haven’t quite clicked so far and they can thank Kasper Schmeichel for not being behind after that terrific save late on in the half.
Work to do for last year’s European Championships semi-finalists!
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