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Indonesia Puts Saudi Arabia’s World Cup Qualification in Jeopardy

It seems that Saudi Arabia’s path to qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will not be easy after their 0-2 loss to host Indonesia in Jakarta. This result came in the sixth round of Group C in the third and final stage of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

This defeat has drawn significant attention from international media, with many considering Saudi Arabia’s strong domestic league and its bid to host a future World Cup edition, yet they now face the real risk of missing out on football’s most important event.

For example, the French newspaper Le Figaro wrote: “(Saudi Arabia’s coach) Hervé Renard is struggling to qualify for the next World Cup. His return to the Middle East has become complicated after a draw against Australia (0-0), followed by a heavy defeat to Indonesia.”

What stands out is that Saudi Arabia desperately needed a win in this match, entering the game following three consecutive matches without a victory. This sequence began with a 0-2 loss to Japan at home, followed by scoreless draws with both Bahrain and Australia.

The most recent draw in Australia came under the guidance of new-old coach Frenchman Hervé Renard, who replaced Italian Roberto Mancini after he was sacked due to poor results.

As a result of this loss, the “Green” team dropped to sixth place with six points, one point behind Australia, who drew 2-2 with Bahrain, and with a worse goal difference than Indonesia. They are now 10 points behind Japan, the group leader, who continued their march toward qualifying for an eighth consecutive World Cup. Japan added three points to their total with a 3-1 victory over China, with goals from Koki Ogawa (39′, 54′) and Ko Itakura (45+6′), while Yang Minglin scored for China (48′).

Bahrain nearly secured another win over Australia after two goals from Mahdi Abd Al-Jaber (75′ and 77′) following Australia’s early lead through Kosei Yengi (1′). However, Yengi managed to score in the dying seconds of the match (90+6′), salvaging a 2-2 draw for Australia.

Bahrain had opened their campaign with a surprising 1-0 win over Australia in their own backyard, and followed that up with two draws and two losses.

Saudi Arabia’s struggles were undoubtedly exacerbated by the continued absence of injured forward Salem Al-Dosari, along with veteran midfielder Salman Al-Faraj, midfielder Abd El-Ilah Al-Malki, and defender Abd El-Ilah Al-Omari. Additionally, Fawad Al-Muwallad remains unavailable after a serious accident where he fell from a balcony in Dubai.

The squad did see the return of Mohamed Kanno following his suspension, and Mohammed Al-Qhatani made his first appearance as a starter with the national team. However, the team found themselves behind in the 32nd minute after a counterattack and a pass from Ragnar Oratmangyun to Marcelino Ferdinand, who finished with skill (32′).

Renard’s team pressed for an equalizer but left too many spaces behind, which Ferdinand exploited in the second half. He added a second goal after a pass from Calvin Verdonk, initially blocked by the defense, before the ball came back to him and he scored (57′).

With this loss, Saudi Arabia suffered their first defeat to Indonesia out of 16 encounters between the two nations, and their second loss in this qualification campaign, leaving them stuck on 6 points. Meanwhile, the hosts, who finished the match with 10 players after Justin Hopner was sent off for a second yellow card (89′), secured their first win and moved to 6 points, temporarily sitting in third place, ahead of Saudi Arabia and China based on goal difference.

The top two teams from each group will qualify directly for the finals, while two additional spots are available in the fourth round for the third and fourth-place finishers. There is also a possibility of three more teams advancing via an international playoff. This international break is the last one for the teams, as the qualifiers will resume in March 2025.

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