Saudis turn world upside down

Coach Herve Renard warned his players not to celebrate for too long after Saudi Arabia's "totally crazy" 2-1 win against Argentina in their football World Cup opener yesterday.

The Saudis bounced back from conceding an early Lionel Messi penalty to produce one of the great World Cup shocks thanks to a Saleh Al-Shehri equalizer and a sublime Salem Al-Dawsari winner at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar.

"All the stars in the sky were aligned for us, but don't forget Argentina are still a fantastic team," said Renard.

"This is football, sometimes totally crazy things can happen," added the Frenchman.

As for enjoying the moment, Renard was eager to look ahead to the Saudis' next Group C matches against Poland and Mexico. He said there was only time for 20 minutes of "good celebration" as they need to prepare for their next two games.

Copa America champions Argentina came into the match on a 36-match unbeaten streak and appeared to be on their way to a straightforward victory after Messi stroked home an early penalty.

Lionel Scaloni's team could have put the game beyond the Saudis' reach in the first half but had three goals chalked off for offside.

Saudi Arabia, ranked a lowly 51st in the world, equalized early in the second half through Al-Shehri, silencing the hordes of Argentina fans. Just minutes later the Green Falcons were in front when Al-Dawsari rifled an unstoppable shot into the top corner after a delightful piece of trickery.

Argentina laid siege to the Saudi goal as the minutes ticked away but goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais proved unbeatable and the final whistle sparked scenes of jubilation.

Defeat is a bitter blow for Argentina, who were one game away from equalling Italy's all-time record of 37 matches unbeaten.

Forward Lautaro Martinez said the loss - in what is likely to be the final World Cup of Messi's glittering career - hurt badly.

"It's clear we lost the game because of our own mistakes, above all in the second half," he said.