Leaders-Mena magazine provided a live coverage of Tuesday’s game between Saudi Arabia and China in the second round of Group C of the AFC 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Fulltime: China 1-2 Saudi Arabia
Scorers: Ali Lajami 14′ (OG) / Hassan Kadesh 39′, 90′
Yellow cards:
Ali Lajami, Abdulelah Al-Malki, Saud Abdulhamid (Saudi Arabia)
Li Yuanyi, Behram Abduweli, Xie Wenneng (China)
Red cards:
Mohamed Kanno (Saudi Arabia)
90+9′ Second half ends.
(GOAL) Hassan Kadesh heads Musab Al Juwayr’s cross from the center of the box into the top right corner following a corner.
90′ GOAAAAAAAAAL… Saudi Arabia double the score.
84′ Awn Al-Saluli’s right-footed shot from the right side of the box, assisted by Musab Al Juwayr’s cross from a corner, went just wide to the left.
82′ Triple subs for Saudi Arabia: Awn Al-Saluli in for Ali Lajami; Mohamed Marran replaces Firas Al-Buraikan and Musab Al-Juwayr comes in for Abdulelah Al-Malki
75′ China’s Wang Shangyuan heads a cross from Fei Nanduo just wide of the right post after a corner.
72′ Substitution for Saudi Arabia: Fahad Al Muwallad comes in for Abdullah Al-Hamdan.
70′ Substitution for China: Zhang Yuning replaces Wu Lei.
63′ Salem Al-Dawsari hits the woodwork with a right-footed shot from the centre of the box. Assisted by Nasser Al-Dawsari.
60’ Saudi Arabia controls the game with 68% possession as the game reaches the hour mark
56′ After VAR check, China’s goal overturned.
54’ GOAAAAAAAL.. China double the score.
46′ Second half begins.
45+8′ First half ends.
45′ The referee signals 7 minutes of injury time.
43′ Nasser Al-Dawsari attempted a left-footed shot from the left side of the box but it goes wide
(GOAL) Hassan Kadesh heads Nasser Al-Dawsari’s corner from close range into the top left corner.
39′ GOAAAAAAAAAL… Saudi Arabia equalize.
36′ China’s Behram Abduweli is shown a yellow card for a bad foul.
30’ Saudi Arabia controls the game with 65% possession as the first half reaches the half-hour mark.
29′ Salem Al-Dawsari’s right-footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the left.
19′ Saudi Arabia’s Mohamed Kanno is shown red card for violent conduct.
18′ VAR Checking: Possible Red Card
14’ GOAAAAAAL.. China score.
11′ Salem Al-Dawsari’s right-footed shot from outside the box goes high and wide to the right after a set piece.
9’ China’s Li Yuanyi is shown a yellow card for a harsh foul.
6’ Lajami handed a yellow card.
0′ First half starts.
13:30 Saudi Arabia’s probable lineup: (4-3-3)
Mohammed Al-Owais – Saud Abdulhamid, Ali Lajami, Hassan Altambakti, Sultan Al-Ghannam – Musab Al-Juwayr, Mohamed Kanno, Abdullah Al-Khaibari – Salem Al-Dawsari, Firas Al-Buraikan, Abdulrahman Ghareeb
13:00 Saudi Arabia have been drawn in Group C alongside Japan, Bahrain, Indonesia, Australia, and China. Japan lead the standings with three points, edging second-placed Bahrain on goal difference. The Green Falcons are fourth with one point, while China sit at the bottom with no points.
12:00 Saudi Arabia will be seeking their first win of the Asian 2026 World Cup qualifiers when they face China in Group C, following a disappointing draw against Indonesia in their opening match.
Lineups:
China: Guangtai Jiang – Gao Zhunyi, Li Lei, Tyias Browning (Shangyuan Wang 46), Jiang Shenglong (Wang Shangyuan 46), Xie Wenneng (Huang Zhengyu 87), Li Yuanyi (Lin Liangming 90+3), Behram Abduweli, Wu Lei (Zhang Yuning 70), Fernandinho, Wang Dalei
Saudi Arabia: Mohammed Al-Owais – Saud Abdulhamid, Ali Lajami (Awn Al Saluli 82), Hassan Altambakti, Hassan Kadesh – Abdulelah Al-Malki (Musab Al Juwayr 82), Mohamed Kanno, Nasser Al-Dawsari (Faisal Al-Ghamdi 90+3) – Salem Al-Dawsari, Firas Al-Buraikan (Mohamed Marran 81), Abdullah Al-Hamdan (Fahad Al Muwallad 72)
خيارات مدربنا “@robymancio ” لمواجهة منتخب الصين 📝⬇. #السعودية_الصين pic.twitter.com/2T45aAz9gJ
— المنتخب السعودي (@SaudiNT) September 10, 2024
Referee:
Nasrullo Kabirov (Tajikistan)
Venue: Dalian Suoyuwan Football Stadium
Check the match preview HERE
