Carried by Al Owais, Saudi Arabia hold Uruguay to a draw

Dominated from start to finish, 27 shots to 7, yet leading thanks to Al-Amri, the Saudis long believed in an upset. Uruguay only equalised late through Maxi Araújo. 1-1.

Uruguay had everything but the result. In Miami, Marcelo Bielsa's Celeste crushed Saudi Arabia in the play, with 67% possession and 27 shots, yet could do no better than a 1-1. Trailing but heroic, carried by a Mohammed Al Owais sparkling, the Saudis long dreamed of an upset before yielding late on. A precious point for Georgios Donis's men.

A Uruguayan siege, a Saudi wall

The match unfolded like a long siege. Controlling the ball from the first minute to the last, Uruguay ran into a wall: Mohammed Al Owais repelled, one after another, the attempts of Federico Viñas. Against all logic, it was nonetheless Saudi Arabia who opened the scoring in the 41st minute^st : from a poorly cleared corner, the ball fell back to Abdulelah Al-Amri, who fired a low shot past Fernando Muslera.

The second half was one long Uruguayan push. Manuel Ugarte struck the post, before the Celeste finally equalised in the 80th minute^th : from another Al Owais save against Viñas, the ball fell to the feet of Maximiliano Araújo, who bundled it into the net. Uruguay then threw everything at it to win, but Al Owais again said no to De la Cruz and then to Federico Valverde.

The two-time world champions against the underdog

On paper, a chasm. On one side Uruguay, two-time world champions, led by Marcelo Bielsa and a squad packed with stars — Federico Valverde, Darwin Núñez, Rodrigo Bentancur. On the other, Saudi Arabia, who have got past the first round only once in six appearances, but who remain capable of upsets, now managed by Georgios Donis.

Everything pointed to the Celeste winning comfortably. But that reckoned without Saudi discipline, and a goalkeeper on one of those great nights.

Bielsa's frustration, Saudi pride

The statistics say it all about Uruguay's frustration: 27 shots to 7, 14 corners to 4, an xG of 1.72 against 0.66, and 41 touches in the opposing box against 10. But the Celeste came undone through their own wastefulness, six offsides flagged, and a great goalkeeper. For Saudi Arabia, this point wrested from a nation of Uruguay's calibre has the feel of a small upset.

A Group H still perfectly level

Like the whole of Group H, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay finish on one point, level with Spain and Cape Verde, who had cancelled each other out 0-0 earlier in the day. The 2nd^nd matchday, on 21 June, will pit Spain against Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde against Uruguay.

Uruguay leave with a point and huge regrets; Saudi Arabia, with a point and the pride of having stood up to a giant. In football, dominance is not always enough — Al Owais has just reminded the Celeste of that.