The World Cup has barely begun, and we already have the first upset – which may be the biggest of this tournament. On Tuesday (22), Saudi Arabia defeated Argentina, led by star Lionel Messi, the current South American champion, 2 to 1, in a comeback at Lusail Stadium.
The match was the first of Group C of the World Cup, which also includes Poland and Mexico, who also faced each other on Tuesday and drew, much to the luck of the Argentinians.
This was the first time the Green Falcons debuted with a victory in a World Cup – in their previous five participations, they had four losses and one draw. The Albiceleste, on the other hand, had not stumbled in the opening round of a World Cup since 1990, when they lost to Cameroon, 1 to 0, in Italy.
The negative result ended Argentina’s 36-match official unbeaten streak and prevented the South American team from equaling the longest unbeaten streak in national team football. The record remains with Italy, which went 37 matches without losing from 2018 to 2021. The last stumble for the Argentinians was against Brazil, 2 to 0, at Mineirão in Belo Horizonte, in the semifinals of the 2019 Copa América.
For Saudi Arabia, the victory against Argentina was so significant that Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the king of the nation since 2015, declared a national holiday for tomorrow (November 23) following the historic win of the country’s national team.
“It is determined that tomorrow, Wednesday, shall be a holiday for all employees in all sectors of the state and the private sector, and for students at all levels of education,” published the Saudi Press Agency – the country’s official news agency.
The two teams will return to the field next Saturday.
Source: Agência Brasil