Saudi Arabia vs Indonesia

Saudi Arabia’s bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup continues in the third qualification round as they entertain Indonesia in their Group C opener at the King Abdullah Sports City.

Saudi Arabia lost the stranglehold on the top place in Group G during the second qualification round on the final matchday, succumbing to a gut-wrenching 2-1 home defeat to eventual group winners Jordan (W4, D1, L1). Confidence stems from the fact that Roberto Mancini’s team won two previous home matches in the ongoing qualification campaign without conceding. Another identical scenario could be in store this week as the Green Falcons won all three previous home encounters against Indonesia, including two ‘to nil.’ However, the Saudis cannot afford to get too comfortable after picking up just two wins in seven home outings since the start of 2023 (D1, L4). Since both those victories yielded a clean sheet, opening the scoring could be a pivotal moment in this clash.

As for visiting Indonesia, they secured a second-place Group F finish in the second qualification round behind Iraq (W3, D1, L2), with both those defeats coming against the group winners. ‘Tim Garuda’ blew hot and cold on their travels in the current qualification cycle (W2, D1, L1), with three of their four away qualifiers featuring over 2.5 goals. However, both those triumphs came against low-ranked Brunei and Vietnam. Here, though, they meet Saudi Arabia. That spells trouble by itself, with Indonesia losing all six historic meetings between the nations while averaging only 0.5 goals per game. As if that’s not concerning enough, they conceded at least two goals in five of those six matches, highlighting the size of that task awaiting them this week.