"Saudi Arabia shake up the world as the holders skip past the Socceroos"

Part 2 of a mini-series of readings from my very first self-published book "Diary From the 2022 FIFA World Cup" and a run down from day 3 as Argentina are shocked and defeated by an organised Saudi Arabia and the holders and European favourites France begin their defence with an easy victory over the "Socceroos" of Australia.

More episodes in this mini-series to follow. Until then, here's a handy link to a book I'm incredibly proud of, other ways and means in which to support me, and a short extract from the chapter being read in this episode:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C2SG69L3

https://www.patreon.com/TheBlackfordBookClub
https://www.paypal.me/TheBlackfordBookClub
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/steveblackford

"From time immemorial, or since 1930 if you prefer, the World Cup has been synonymous with the magical and the mystical of a shock victory for a rank underdog. But some shocks are so seismic that they are held up at every tournament since they shook the world as a shining example that every underdog can have its day, and David does occasionally slay Goliath. The two most uniformly rolled out examples would be the humiliating 1–0 defeat meted out to England by a still fledgling USA football team in 1950 and 40 years later, the bruising and chaotic 1–0 defeat of the reigning Champions Argentina by those beautiful upstarts from Cameroon.

North Korea beat the might of Italy in the 1966 World Cup, whilst their southern neighbours did the same to shake up the world, and the World Cup, of 2002. But today’s hard fought, hard won and thoroughly deserved 2–1 victory for Saudi Arabia over the might of Argentina could arguably be described as the greatest all time shock in World Cup history.

That’s for the future.

Hopefully another shock will come along and usurp even today’s magnificent achievement?

We’d certainly have a tournament on our hands then!

Sure lady luck carried Saudi Arabia through a sticky first half but, and this is a very big but, they were organised, tenacious, physical and even at 1–0 down at half-time, they were in the game. Arguably again, this newly installed “greatest shock in World Cup history” shouldn’t have come anywhere near realisation as in addition to Lionel Messi’s 10th minute penalty he also scored another soon after, so too his attacking partner Lautaro Martínez, twice, yet all three goals were ruled out for offside, and twice via the dreaded eye in the sky VAR killjoy.

So the underdogs were a tad lucky to still be in the game but they deserved to be and, crucially, despite the evidence noted above, Argentina weren’t playing all that well.

The 5 minutes that shook the world today were set against a cacophonous din from the hordes of travelling fans from Saudi Arabia. It was a real throwback to World Cups of old and that constant barrage of noise, songs, air horns and drums associated with Argentina in 1978 or Mexico in 1986. I don’t make these comparisons lightly either and nor am I lazily linking an Argentinian defeat today to their two world Champion victories of the past and nor am I saying that today’s defeat means they are out of the tournament.

They are not.

But Argentina weren’t impressive at all, Saudi Arabia matched them all over the field, were more physical and quicker to loose second balls and through the central defensive partnership of Ali Albulayhi and my “Man of the Match” Hassan Altambakti, they repelled everything the highly favoured Argentina team, Lionel Messi and all, could throw at them".

Thanks for watching!

Please like and subscribe!

Please also see the links above for ways to support me if you're able and wish to.

Thanks.