Pakistan football team kicked off their match against the home side Saudi Arabia on the evening of November 16 as the rain poured in the city of Hofuf. The Shaheens were taking part in their first-ever round 2 match of joint FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers.
How it all went down?
Excluding the goalie Al Owais who started the famous game against Argentina in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Roberto Mancini, the 2021 EURO winner, distributed the remaining 10 players in a 3-5-2 formation. This strategy gave an extra man to the hosts in midfield against Constantine XI which was assigned a 4-4-2. Playing a high-intensity game in front of more than 11,000 spectators in Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium, Pakistani men in white could not maintain a positive start and conceded a goal in the 6th minute.
Also Read: Parwaaz 2038: How the Pakistan Football Federation is Revolutionizing Football in Pakistan?
Early Inaccuracies Cost Shaheens:
An inaccurate tackle by Alamgir Ghazi allowed Saleh Alshehri to progress the ball and dribble aside Mamoon Musa to kick in the far corner of the net. Conceding an early goal was surely against the will of the English coach which enabled his men to create some chances on the counterattacks.
In the dying moments of the 15th minute, Otis Khan, who wore the armband after being cleared by FIFA to represent the emerging South Asian nation FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers, 8 days before this clash, started attacking the right wing which eventually led to a Fareedullah header from a cross by Denmark-born Abdul Samad Arshad.
Just after a short period, in the 17th minute, the Denmark-born winger got another opportunity assisted by 24-year-old Rahis Nabi to equalize against the mighty Arabians. Despite Shaheens not capitalizing on these opportunities, they maintained a strong structure which helped them finish the half at 1-0.
Maintaining the Composure:
Before the 2nd half started, Imran Kayani, the debutant from the English 7th-tier, and Harun Hamid, the 20-year-old hero of October 17, came in as half-time substitutions. The Grimsby Town winger Otis Khan, who started the game from the right flank, shifted to the opposite wing which created room for Harun to create an impact from the right. This act clearly showed the intent of Constantine who wanted to have an attacking grip on the game. However, within 75 seconds, Saudi Arabia got a penalty, credit to Mamoon Musa’s pull on Alshehri, which the latter converted to give his team a 2-goal lead. Till the end of 90 minutes, Pakistan managed to create a couple of chances, but more importantly, kept the scoreline intact.
Mancini, the former 2011/12 English Premier League winner with the current European treble winners Manchester City, made impactful substitutions involving Abdulrahman Ghareeb and Abdullah Radif in the later half of the game. In the injury time, the mental and physical fatigue got the better of Shaheens and the aforementioned fresh legs scored 1 goal each to seal the 3 points.
More to Read: Review of Babar Azam’s Captaincy
A Brave Outing for Pakistan
The scoreline does not depict the actual situation of the match which could have ended differently if the star defender Easah Suleiman had not picked an injury on club duty. Moreover, the Pakistani fans appreciated their team for their fighting spirit and keeping a decent scoreline as compared to Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Singapore in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers.
The Pakistan football team returned from Saudi Arabia on Friday, the day after the Saudi game. The Jinnah Stadium legends will host their battle against Tajikistan on November 21 in Islamabad which will be Shaheens’ 2nd competitive home game in 12 years. However, it will not be an easy game for Stephen Constantine’s men as their opponents are managed by experienced Croatian Petar Šegrt who has a young squad at his disposal.
Also Read:
