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:
France 3-1 Australia
69 mins: Dembele whips a nasty ball across the face of the Australia goal from the byline on the right, and Mbappe jumps to head it off the post and in!
GOAL! France 3-1 Australia (Mbappe, 67)
67 mins: GOAL FOR FRANCE!! Mbappe doesn’t miss this one!!
France 2-1 Australia
67 mins: SO CLOSE!
A lovely give-and-go between T Hernandez and Mbappe sees the former storm into the Australia box and cut it back for the latter...
But Mbappe misses it, only for Griezmann to slide a low shot towards goal, where he’s denied by a terrific goal-line clearance!
France 2-1 Australia
63 mins: France have a corner on their left now, and it’s whipped in for Konate, who climbs but can only head the ball over the Australia crossbar.
France 2-1 Australia
61 mins: Chance for France!
Mbappe receives the ball just outside the Australia box with his back to goal. He lays it off to Giroud, who returns the favour by slipping a ball through the defensive line, as Mbappe spins to get on the end of it...
He does, but a crucial late challenge from Rowles denies the PSG forward a clean shot!
France 2-1 Australia
59 mins: It’s all France right now. They’re staying patient on the ball, while Australia are looking to stay compact and disciplined with their shape.
France 2-1 Australia
56 mins: Duke, who just picked up a booking, is replaced by Jason Cummings up front for Australia.
France 2-1 Australia
55 mins: A note that Giroud’s goal saw him move to within one goal of Thierry Henry’s France record of 51.
France 2-1 Australia
54 mins: A wasted free kick from Mbappe, who curls one over everybody in the Australia box from the left wing, with the ball going out for a goal kick.
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