We haven’t witnessed such a shock in a World Cup game in many years.
Saudi Arabia’s victory over Argentina in their fifth World Cup, their first since 2006, was a seismic event that sent shockwaves through the whole competition.
There have been a few unexpected results so far, such as Japan defeating Germany by a score of 2-1, but nothing in recent memory can quite compare to the 51st-ranked team in the world defeating the third-ranked.
With a successful outcome here, Saudi Arabia can make another significant step toward achieving their goal of knockout round qualification.
In their 0-0 stalemate with Mexico, Poland were quite disappointing as they provided little little offensively throughout the whole game.
They did, however, fail to capitalize on a penalty when star forward Robert Lewandowski blew his significant opportunity. It was a miss that perfectly encapsulated the overall lack of quality in front of goal in the game.
You believe that Poland needs to win in order to increase their chances of making it through.
TEAMS PREVIEW
Poland Preview
FIFA Position: 26
Expected Results: Group Stage
Reasons to smile include:
After Argentina’s loss, Group C is now very open.
They believe they can score three points in this situation.
Fearful causes include:
looked utterly lackadaisical in front of the goal.
haven’t scored an open-play World Cup goal since 1998
Given their missed penalty in the second half, Poland will have been upset to leave the game against Mexico with just a point.
After Argentina’s embarrassing loss to Saudi Arabia, it had the perfect chance to take control of Group C. As things stand, each of the four teams will now have dreams of making it to the Round of 16.
If Poland wins this match, they will tie Saudi Arabia for the most points along with either Argentina or, if Mexico defeats Poland, either Saudi Arabia. The final set of fixtures will then provide an exciting conclusion.
Poland must win this game, though, in order to advance. Poland’s top aim will be to more frequently locate Lewandowski in the area because he was practically left alone the whole game.
Poland has scored five goals in its last five games, all coming from set pieces, demonstrating how little they produce in free play.
Robert Lewandowski, a.k.a.
Lewandowski scoring his penalty against Mexico would have been a sure bet if you had put your house on it. The striker has scored frequently over the past ten years at every level, so if he is given good support, you would anticipate him to do so.
Saudi Arabia Preview
FIFA Ranking: 51
Predicted Finish: Group Stage
Reasons to be cheerful
Win over Argentina was as much deserved as it was shocking
Have a real opportunity to qualify for the knockout stagesReasons to be fearful
Can they produce the same level of intensity again?
Their high defensive line will get them into trouble eventuallyWe didn’t have to wait too long for the first major footballing story of the tournament.
Saudi Arabia pulled off a historic upset in the tournament’s fifth game. But it didn’t seem like that would be the case. Argentina scored first and had three additional goals disallowed for offside.
Indeed, Saudi Arabia’s strong defensive line came close to getting them into trouble multiple times, but the lineman’s flag always came to their rescue.
They ultimately won the game thanks to their relentless pushing, but they will certainly struggle against opponents that can take advantage of that particular vulnerability.
It remains to be seen if Poland—a squad lacking a lot of upfront speed—can accomplish that.
The Saudis will try to approach this situation similarly.
Salem Al Dawsari’s “Star Man”
scored the game-winning goal for the Saudis after a remarkable five-minute comeback, earning him a well-deserved reward for his extraordinary effort throughout the contest.
