Uruguay salvages late 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia after Al-Owais heroics keep Group H wide open
Maxi Araújo's 80th-minute equaliser rescued a point for Uruguay against a resilient Saudi Arabia at Hard Rock Stadium, after goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais repeatedly denied La Celeste in a match that left all four Group H teams on one point.
First-half Saudi lead
Saudi Arabia took a surprise lead four minutes before the break when centre-back Abdulelah Al-Amri pounced on a rebound. Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera had palmed away a header from a corner, but the ball fell to Al-Amri, who tapped in from close range. The goal echoed Saudi Arabia's famous 2022 opener against Argentina, though this time the underdog held on only until the final stages.
Muslera, playing his 135th international match a day before his 40th birthday and appearing at his fifth World Cup, had earlier produced a superb reaction save to deny Al-Amri from a similar set-piece. The Saudi players marked the halftime lead by kneeling and kissing the turf.
In the first half the team didn't play with tempo, didn't provoke mistakes, didn't have depth.
Uruguay's second-half siege
Uruguay emerged transformed after the interval. Marcelo Bielsa's side pressed relentlessly, pinning Saudi Arabia deep in their own half. Federico Vinas saw a point-blank header saved by Al-Owais in the first half, and Manuel Ugarte struck the post with a low drive from outside the area in the second. Uruguay racked up 28 attempts on goal to Saudi Arabia's seven.
Darwin Núñez, now playing club football in Saudi Arabia for Al-Hilal, managed only two touches in the opening 20 minutes and was substituted at halftime along with Matías Viña. Their replacements Agustín Canobbio and Juan Manuel Sanabria injected fresh energy.
- Araújo tests Al-Owais with an early shot from the edge of the area (5')
- Al-Owais denies Vinas' point-blank header (30')
- Muslera saves Al-Amri's first attempt from a corner (37')
- Al-Amri scores on a rebound to put Saudi Arabia ahead (41')
- Ugarte hits the post with a low drive from outside the area (61')
- Araújo equalises from close range after a rebound (80')
- Al-Owais saves Valverde's stoppage-time effort to preserve the draw (90+')
Al-Owais stands firm
The 34-year-old Saudi goalkeeper, who plays his club football in the Saudi second division, produced a string of saves that kept his side in the match. He denied Federico Valverde with a spectacular stop in stoppage time after getting fingertips to an Ugarte effort in the 61st minute. Al-Owais was finally beaten in the 80th when Araújo hammered a rebound into the far corner from a tight angle, but he recovered to preserve the draw.
We should have won today, we didn't do it.
Group H wide open
The draw followed Cape Verde's scoreless result against Spain earlier in the day, meaning all four Group H teams, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Spain and World Cup debutants Cape Verde, sit on one point after the first round of fixtures. The group had been expected to produce two clear favourites, but the opening matches delivered two draws.
- Uruguay
- 1 points
- Saudi Arabia
- 1 points
- Spain
- 1 points
- Cape Verde
- 1 points
Asian confederation unbeaten
AFC nations have gone unbeaten through their first five matches at this expanded 48-team World Cup, collecting two wins and three draws. South Korea beat the Czech Republic 2-1, Australia defeated Turkey 2-0, Japan drew 2-2 with the Netherlands, and Qatar drew 1-1 with Switzerland. Saudi Arabia will host the World Cup in 2034, eight years from now, with the national team's development central to the government's sporting vision.
