All about Saudi Arabia's Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari, Argentina's nemesis in World Cup 2022 opener
Saudi Arabian stars Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari scored a goal each in their 2-1 victory against Lionel Messi's Argentina in their Group C opening clash at the Qatar World Cup 2022 on Tuesday. Here's all you need to know about the two players:
FollowSaleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari will go down in the history books of Saudi Arabian football as the two players shocked Lionel Messi's Argentina by scoring a goal each in their 2-1 victory in the opening Group C encounter at the Qatar World Cup 2022 on Tuesday.
In the 10th minute of the clash in front of a packed Lusail Stadium in Doha, Argentinian superstar Messi scored a comfortable goal from the penalty spot, sparking massive excitement among fans of the South American nation. However, their celebration was short-lived as Saudi Arabia brought an attacking game to the table in the second half.
Saleh Al-Shehri scored a stunning goal in the 48th minute of the match, followed by a splendid strike by Salem Al-Dawsari just five minutes later. Saudi Arabian fans worldwide jumped in jubilation as they held on to the unthinkable, i.e. beating Qatar World Cup 2022 favourites Argentina in the opening game.
While football enthusiasts flood social media platforms with comments following this shocking result, here's all you need to know about the two Saudi Arabian players.
Who is Saleh Al-Shehri?
Saleh Al-Shehri, who scored his 11th goal in his international career against Argentina today, plays for Al-Hilal Saudi FC in the Saudi Pro League.
Saleh played as a striker in the junior and youth divisions of Al-Ahli and graduated from the Academy of Al-Ahli. The 29-year-old striker made his professional debut on September 2, 2012, in Beira-Mar against Moreirense, opening the scoring in that game. Saleh is the first scorer from Saudi Arabia in Europe. In his second game against Vitória, he scored the league's quickest goal 12–13. With S.C. Beira-Mar, Saleh participated in two games and scored twice.
In the 2012 AFC U-19 Championship, Saleh scored a goal against the Qatari national under-20 team, which Saudi Arabia defeated 4-2. Saudi Arabia earned four points but was eliminated due to their third-place finish.
On July 20, 2013, Saleh returned to Al-Ahli and played in his first friendly match against Najran, losing 1-0. The striker played for Al-Raed from 2015 to 2020, scoring 22 goals from 77 appearances. In 46 games from Al-Hilal since 2020, the Saudi Arabian striker has scored 8 goals.
Also read: Qatar World Cup 2022: Top 6 moments from Argentina's shocking 1-2 loss to Saudi
Who is Salem Al-Dawsari?
Salem Al-Dawsari, who scored the second goal in Saudi Arabia's 2-1 win against Argentina in the Qatar World Cup 2022, is a winger and plays for Al-Hilal Saudi FC in the Saudi Pro League.
Al-Dawsari joined Al-Hilal as a youth player in 2011. He joined Spanish club Villarreal on loan in 2018 due to an agreement between the Saudi Arabian Football Federation and La Liga. He only made one appearance in Spain, substituting for Villareal against Real Madrid as they rallied from a goal down to draw 2-2 in 2018.
Al-Hilal won the 2019 AFC Champions League title after defeating Urawa Red Diamonds 2-0 on the road in the second leg of the final on November 24. The victory qualified Al-Hilal for the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup. Al-Dawsari scored the opening goal in the final. In 207 appearances for Al-Hilal, the 31-year-old winger has scored 47 goals.
Al-Dawsari received a call-up to the Saudi Arabian national team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, and in a 2012 away game against Australia, he scored his first goal for his country. He was included in the Saudi Arabian preliminary team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia in May of that year. Al-Dawsari's team defeated Egypt 2-1 in their final World Cup group stage encounter on June 25, thanks to his late goal.
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