Saudi Arabia survived a dominant second-half display from Uruguay to hold on for a 1-1 draw in their World Cup opener on Monday night.
Playing in oppressive heat, where the temperature read 31°C and 86 per cent humidity at kick-off, Saudi Arabia held off Marcelo Bielsa's high-octane Uruguay in the first half before the South American side dominated possession in the second half against an exhausted Green Falcons side.
Despite Uruguay enjoying 65 per cent possession, it was Saudi Arabia who scored first following a corner kick in the 41st minute. Midfielder Mohamed Kanno's downwards header bounced off Uruguayan goalkeeper Fernando Muslera and Abdulelah Al Almri pounced on the rebound to open his World Cup account.
It was a second international goal for the Al Nassr centre-back Al Amri, who has won 44 caps since his national team debut in 2021.
A double substitution by Bielsa at half-time gave Uruguay a much-needed injection of energy, as he took off striker Darwin Nunez for Juan Sanabria. The change worked, with the South Americans dominating possession in the second half and forcing Saudi keeper Mohammed Al Owais into several highlight-worthy saves, including a fingertip effort to deflect a low attempt from Manuel Ugarte on to the post in the 60th minute.
It was one of seven shots on goal he saved, including a diving header from Uruguayan forward Federico Vinas in the first half. Al Owais also made two strong saves from Nicolas de la Cruz and Federico Valverde in stoppage time.
Meanwhile, Saudi national team head coach Georgios Donis held on to his substitutes for much of the match in the Miami heat, with the final three coming in the final minutes of play.
Uruguay outshot Saudi Arabia 28-7 on the night, including 10 on target. Their breakthrough came in the 80th minute, after Maxi Araujo collected a rebound off Al Owais to send the ball past the Saudi keeper at the near post.
Monday's game was the first time Saudi Arabia held a half-time lead at the World Cup since the 1994 tournament, which was also hosted in the US. The Green Falcons reached the knockout stage at that tournament.
Some fans, speaking to The National ahead of the Uruguay contest, believed this year's location to be a good omen for them to return to the knockout stage for the first time in more than two decades.
Saudi Arabia entered the 2026 World Cup in poor form, making difficult work of the qualification process. Greek manager Donis, who is well acquainted with Saudi Arabia's domestic league, was appointed after Herve Renard was sacked in April.
The draw puts Saudi Arabia level in Group H after Cape Verde held pre-tournament favourites Spain to a surprise 0-0 draw earlier on Monday.
Saudi Arabia's next game comes against Spain in Atlanta on June 21.
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