RAWALPINDI : Nov 17 : Saudi Arabia defeated Pakistan 4-0 in the second round of the FIFA World Cup qualifying match. Pakistan will host Tajikistan in their second group match on Tuesday. The Pakistani team will now face Jordan and Tajikistan in the second stage Group G match. According to the report, Saleh Al Shahri gave Saudi Arabia the lead in the sixth minute at the Prince Abdullah Bin Jalavi Stadium in Saudi Arabia.
Pakistan had a chance to equalize 10 minutes later, but Faridullah’s header from Abdul Samad Arshad’s cross went over the goal post. Gone.
The Pakistani team showed a great game in the World Cup Qualifying and prevented the Saudi team from scoring more goals until half time.
Saleh al-Shahri doubled his goal tally a year after stunning world champions Argentina at the last World Cup in Qatar, with Roberto Mancini’s Saudi side beating 48 teams in North America with a 0-4 victory. took an early lead in Group ‘G’ to qualify for the tournament, where Jordan drew 1-1 with Tajikistan in the second match. After gaining the lead in the match, Saudi Arabia played fast in the first half of the game.
Saleh Al Shahri, who equalized in Saudi Arabia’s 1-2 victory over Argentina in Qatar, made no mistake in getting the ball into the goal again and goalkeeper Yusuf Butt had no chance to stop the strike.
The Saudis came out more prepared in the second half and Saleh Al Shahri was brought down by Mamoun Musa Khan running into the box, Yousuf Butt guessed correctly but Saleh Al Shahri’s kick was too powerful for him to stop.
The Saudi team wanted to score more goals but Pakistan’s defense kept them tied and they managed to score their next two goals in stoppage time.
Abdullah Gharib delivered the ball into the goal and then Abdullah Hadi’s sharp shot had no response from the Pakistani defence.
Along with Saudi Arabia, Asia’s other big teams also started their campaigns with big wins, with Australia, Japan and South Korea scoring a combined 17 goals against their opponents in matches played on home grounds.
It should be noted that Pakistan won the first FIFA World Cup qualifier by creating a new history by defeating Cambodia. Haroon Hameed Khan’s 68th minute goal proved decisive between Cambodia and Pakistan at the Jinnah Stadium Islamabad.
After the initial success, the host team made it to the second round of the Football World Cup 2026.