The first upset of the world cup just happened. Saudi Arabia stunned Argentina, one of the favorites in this world cup, at the Lusail Stadium. Despite conceding an early goal from the spot kick, Saudi Arabia returned two goals at the beginning of the second half to beat Argentina for the first time in their history. Moreover, this defeat ends Argentina’s 36 games unbeaten run.
Match Report
In the first match of Group C, Argentina faced Saudi Arabia today. Lionel Scaloni set up Argentina’s formation with 4-2-3-1. As Giovanni Lo Celso was ruled out, the manager played Papu Gomez in that role.
Argentina’s starting was very aggressive. That is why they got a penalty kick in the 10th minute. So, Lionel Messi came forward to take the spot kick, and he made no mistake. After that, Argentina kept pressing the opponents. Unfortunately, their three goals have been disallowed due to offside.
Returning from the break, Saudi Arabia tried to dominate the game. They defended very well. Moreover, they leveled the scoreline in the 48th minute with the goal of Saleh Alshehri. Within five minutes, Saudi Arabia scored again and took the lead.
After that, Argentina fought for their lives but failed to find the net. They couldn’t score more in the remaining minutes. Therefore, Argentina lost the match against Saudi Arabia and started the world cup with a shameful defeat.
Match Analysis
Saudi’s defense was brilliant: In the first half, three goals of Argentina were disallowed because of offside. The four defenders of Saudi Arabia played fantastically to catch Argentina in the offside trap. Argentine players were caught in offside 10 times.
Vulnerable midfield: Argentina’s midfield was very shaky during the entire game. Leandro Parades was the only supplier from the midfield. Rodrigo De Paul and Papu Gomez couldn’t play well. They failed to create chances as well. Therefore, Leo Messi had to go deeper to create opportunities.
Cuti Romero was not in his prime form: Center-back Cristian Romero was not in his best form against Saudi Arabia. Saudi strikers easily broke the Argentine defense. Moreover, Argentina conceded the first goal because of Romero’s error.