Saudi Arabian Coach: Celebration Enough for 20 Minutes, then Focus on Poland
Lusail - Saudi Arabia coach, Herve Renard, was very happy that his team beat Argentina. However, the celebration did not have to be long because the second match awaited.
Playing at the Lusail Stadium, Tuesday (22/11/2022) afternoon WIB, Saudi Arabia actually fell behind in the 10th minute because of Lionel Messi's penalty. However, Saudi Arabia dared to face the resistance of Argentina afterwards.
At the start of the second half, Saudi Arabia was even able to turn things around by scoring two goals in five minutes, from Saleh Al-Shehri and Salam Al-Dasawari.
The 2-1 score lasted until the game was over and Saudi Arabia became the first team to stop Argentina's unbeaten record for the last 36 matches.
They are also the first Asian team to beat a team from South America.
"Congratulations to these fantastic players. I decided to come to this country 3.5 years ago and since then, I have always been supported by good management, then an extraordinary president, and also the Minister of Sport," Renard said as quoted by Sky Sports.
"We prepared very well and all the stars in the sky are supporting us."
This relatively solid result certainly boosted the players' confidence ahead of the second duel in Group C of the 2022 World Cup against Poland on November 26. Therefore, Renard asked his players to forget about the victory and fully focus on preparing for the second match.
"We have a lot of amazing players, but this is football. Sometimes some crazy things can happen."
"It was enough for us to celebrate for 20 minutes. There are still two games or more for us after that."