A year ago, things were not going as planned for Saudi Arabia. The Green Falcons were struggling in Group C of the third round of AFC qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 26™. Time was of the essence, so out went Roberto Mancini and in came a man who had ‘been there, done that’ in the form of Herve Renard.
A stumble in Indonesia in November didn’t help nerves, but come March 2025, Renard’s fingerprints were back to being all over the Saudi Arabian team, as they collected seven points from three matchdays to secure a spot in the fourth round.
Drawn into a group with Indonesia and Iraq, Renard waived his magic wand, earning a hard-fought 3-2 win against the Garuda before taking care of business in a scoreless draw against Iraq to punch their ticket to next year’s global showcase in North America.
There is just something about Renard and this Saudi Arabia side that works. The history books will forever show Argentina as champions of Qatar 2022, but nobody will ever forget how an inspirational team talk at half-time from Renard inspired Saudi Arabia to overcome a 1-0 deficit and stun the eventual champions 2-1 in their curtain-raiser.
While Saudi Arabia’s campaign came to an end in the group stage, the bond that grew from one of the greatest FIFA World Cup upsets is the perfect foundation from which they can build toward an even better finish in Canada, Mexico and the USA.
While Feras Albrikan stood out with his five goals across all of qualifying, including a massive brace in the fourth round triumph over Indonesia, it was the defence that carried the day for Saudi Arabia. They conceded just four goals in their last six qualifiers, the kind of performance that will be required against the world’s best next year.
Coincidentally, the last time Saudi Arabia reached the knockout stage at a World Cup came in their maiden voyage at USA 1994. With giant-killer Renard at the helm again, Saudi Arabia will be the last opponent anyone wants to see.
