Welcome to our coverage of Poland vs Saudi Arabia at the Education City Stadium!
Saudi Arabia come off the back of a sensational 2-1 win against Argentina on Tuesday, whilst Poland are looking to earn their first win of the tournament after a 0-0 draw with Mexico. If Saudi Arabia win, it would see them become the first nation to qualify for the knockout stages, something which was never predicted before the World Cup.
KICK OFF!
‘4 – Saudi Arabia have started aggressively, pushing up high to put Poland under intense pressure.
‘6 – Matty Cash tries to cross the ball into the box only to mishit his effort and allow Mohammed Al Owais to easily claim it.
‘8 – Salem Al Dawsari, picking up the ball on the left, tries to loft a high ball into the box only for Poland to clear away the danger.
Embed from Getty Images’14 – CHANCE! Kanno drives forward deep into Poland’s half, before forcing a superb save from Wojciech Szczesny.
’16 – YELLOW CARDS! Jakub Kiwior and Cash both go into the book for late challenges.
’20 – YELLOW CARD! Arkadiusz Milik is the next to go into the book.
Embed from Getty Images’22 – YELLOW CARD! Abdulelah Al Malki becomes the first Saudi Arabia player to enter the book.
’26 – VERY CLOSE! Piotr Zielinski whips in a corner from the right flank to find Krystian Bielik inside the area, whose fine header is cleared off the line by Saleh Al-Shehri.
’30 – Robert Lewandowski tries to take down a high ball into his channel, only to lose out to his defender.
’34 – Milik receives the ball with his back to goal only for Abdulelah Al Amri to clatter into him with a big challenge. Saudi Arabia have been the better team here, but Poland possess a threat in the final third.
’39 – GOAL POLAND! Zielinski makes it 1-0 to Poland! The ball falls to Lewandowski after a direct pass caught Saudi Arabia short, the superstar lays it off to the Napoli midfielder who fires powerfully past the goalkeeper. It’s against the run of play, but Poland will not care a single bit!
’43 – VAR are checking for a possible Saudi Arabia penalty here…
’44 – PENALTY SAUDI ARABIA! The referee has given a penalty after a VAR review following Bielik’s foul on Al-Shehri. The midfielder clips the attacker on his foot, which sees the attacker tumble to the ground. It seems a very soft penalty, and very theatrical from Al-Shehri. but this is a big chance for Saudi Arabia to draw level!
’45 – PENALTY SAVED! OH MY! THAT IS A SENSATIONAL SAVE FROM SZCZESNY! Al-Dawsari steps up to take the penalty, but his weak effort towards the bottom left corner is comfortably saved by the former Arsenal goalkeeper. The rebound falls to another Saudi Arabia player, but Szczesny makes another sensational save to tip it over the bar. WOW!
Embed from Getty Images’45 – There will be 10 added minutes at the end of the first half!
’45+4 – YELLOW CARD! Abdulelah Al Amri is booked after making a poor challenge on Lewandowski.
’45+5 – Saudi Arabia are on top again, and really pushing hard for an equaliser.
HALF TIME! Poland 1-0 Saudi Arabia! It’s been an entertaining game in Qatar. Saudi Arabia will feel frustrated to be 1-0 down at half-time, but there is still plenty of time for the middle eastern country to bring it back.
SECOND HALF BEGINS!
’46 – We’re back underway for the second half here. Saudi Arabia completed a superb second half comeback against Argentina on Tuesday, can they do the same again?
’46 – SUBSTITUTE! Al Abed has replaced Al-Najei in midfield for Saudi Arabia.
’51 – Al Amri plays a beautiful cross-field ball to find a teammate, only for Poland to recover the ball.
’56 – HUGE CHANCE! Al Dawsari gets a shot off from close range after a chaotic scramble inside the box, but Szczesny makes an impressive save to deny him. It’s hard to believe how this is still 1-0.
Embed from Getty Images’58 – Poland have began to sit deep to defend their lead, but it’s placing their defence under immense pressure.
’60 – CHANCE! Al Dawsari does superbly to control the ball in a tight space before playing in Al Birakan, whose shot flies just over the crossbar. How on earth have Saudi Arabia not scored!
’62 – Al-Shehri does well to tee-up Kanno, whose blazed effort also just flies over the crossbar.
’63 – SUBSTITUTE! Jakub Kaminski comes on for Zielinski. The goalscorer performed strongly, but Poland need fresh legs in the middle of the park.
’64 – CROSSBAR! Milik, with a fine diving header, rattles the crossbar after a lovely ball in from the left flank. It’s a close call for Saudi Arabia, who have been dominant.
’65 – SUBSTITUTE! Sultan Al Ghanam comes on for Mohammed Al Burayk.
’67 – WOODWORK! Lewandowski rattles the near post after connecting with a cross from the right flank. Is the tide beginning to turn in this match?
’69 – Al-Dawsari tries his luck from distance, but it is comfortably saved by the goalkeeper. A bit more power, and that could have threatened Szczesny.
’71 – SUBSTITUTE! Krzysztof Piatek comes on for Milik to provide fresh legs in Poland’s attack. Milik has played well today, and has been unlucky to not score.
’74 – This match has really changed. Saudi Arabia are leaving themselves exposed at the back, and Poland seem more likely to score at the moment.
Embed from Getty Images’78 – CLOSE! After a nice period of build-up play, Al Maliki pulls the trigger from the edge of the box only for his left-footed effort to flash inches wide of the target.
’82 – GOAL POLAND! That’s the goal that will seal victory! It’s a horrific moment from Saudi Arabia defensively. A simple pass across the backline is not controlled by the Saudi Arabia defender after he slips. It falls perfectly into Lewandowski’s path, who takes it into his stride, and places it past Al Owais. That is the striker’s first ever World Cup goal and he looks delighted!
’86 – SUBSTITUTES! Nasser Al Dawsari and Abdulrahman Al-Obood have come on for Saleh Al-Shehri and Abdulelah Al Malki retrospectively for Saudi Arabia. These will inject the side with some fresh energy, but I think it is all too late.
’90 – SO CLOSE! Lewandowski is so close to making it 3-0 to Poland, but Al Owais denies him right at the end. The striker glides past several defenders, he’s one on one with the goalkeeper, but he decides to chip the goalkeeper instead of powering past him. Al Owais gets a crucial touch on it and it stays 2-0!
Embed from Getty Images’90 – There will be 7 added minutes at the end of the second half!
’90+2 – Poland whip in a corner from the left side only for Al Owais to punch it clear. Both sides know that goal difference might be crucial, so both teams are really pushing for another goal!
90+5 – SUBSTITUTE! Hattan Sultan Babhir has come on for Nawaf Al-Abid. Al-Abid came on in the 46th minute, but has not even lasted a full half.
90+6 – Kanno comes close to pulling one back, but his audacious effort goes just wide of the post.
FULL TIME! POLAND 2-0 SAUDI ARABIA
It’s a huge win for Poland, who now sit on 4 points top of the group. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia sit in 2nd place with 3 points, and they will be eagerly watching Argentina vs Mexico later tonight.
Player of the Match – Wojciech Szczesny
Embed from Getty ImagesIt’s been a superb performance from the former Arsenal goalkeeper, who looked calm and composed in the net, and showed his dominance in the backline. He made a sensational double save to deny Saudi Arabia from the spot, and that was crucial to Poland’s victory!
