Matchday three of the 2022 World Cup delivered arguably the greatest shock in tournament history.
Saudis' seismic shock
USA usurp England in 1950, Cameroon conquer Argentina in 1990 and Senegal slay France in 2002.
On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia added their name to the list of biggest World Cup upsets when they pulled off a thrilling 2-1 smash-and-grab victory against tournament favourites Argentina.
The Saudis trailed to a first-half Lionel Messi penalty and were thankful to see three more Argentina goals ruled out for offside - but make no mistake, Herve Renard's team were well worth their "totally crazy" win at the Lusail Stadium.
The names of Saleh Al Shehri and Salem Al Dawsari will long be remembered for their goals against a team on an unbeaten 36-match run, but the Herculean efforts of the rest of the team - most notably Hassan Al Tambakti - should also be lauded.
While citizens of Saudi Arabia will enjoy a public holiday in recognition of the team's efforts in Qatar, their victory will now go down in World Cup folklore.
Why all the injury time?
By the end of Saudi Arabia's famous win over Argentina - only the fifth match of a 64-match tournament - almost 90 minutes of injury time had been added on for all games played to the point in Doha.
More than 14 minutes were added on to the first half of England's Group B opener to allow Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand to receive treatment following a clash of heads with his own player.
And while we all agree that concussion protocols will take as long as necessary, it became obvious to anyone watching Beiranvand would be in no fit state to continue in less than half that time.
Reasons the game is halted include injuries, video assistant referee (VAR) decisions, substitutions, penalties and red cards, with some players often deliberately delaying the restart after such incidents in order to wind down the clock – an annoying theme already prevalent at this tournament.
Fourth officials have been instructed by Fifa to keep track of time lost during the games in Qatar. Depending on your viewpoint, this has caused unnecessarily long games (see England-Iran and Argentina-Saudi Arabia) or allowed for us to witness last-minute goals that only enhance the tournament (see Davy Klaassen's strike for the Netherlands on 98 minutes and 17 seconds against Senegal).
And what happens when we get to the knockout stage? An extra half-hour (15 minutes each half) is played if the scores are level at the end of 90 minutes. Teams could potentially be forced to play three halves (see Mehdi Taremi's penalty for Iran against England came with 102:30 on the clock, the latest World Cup goal on record excluding extra time) or more if the fourth official deems it appropriate.
The clock should stop, so to speak, to allow injured players to receive treatment, but the time added on to celebrate a goal can be mitigated by hurrying the players along and time wasters can be dealt with by being shown a yellow card for repeated infringements.
Mbappe's superstar showing
While much of the plaudits for France's win over Australia are being directed at Olivier Giroud after his brace saw him draw level with Thierry Henry's national team record of 51 goals - it is another Bleus striker who will have opposition defences quaking in their boots.
Kylian Mbappe scored the third France goal as they claimed a 4-1 win over the Socceroos to get their World Cup defence off to a flying start, but that was arguably the least of the Frenchman's contribution.
The jet-heeled Paris Saint-Germain striker skinned the Australia defence on multiple occasions with his blistering pace, and his flick to to Adrien Rabiot in the buildup to the first of Giroud's goals was simply scrumptious.
The 23-year-old Mbappe already has a World Cup winner's medal after announcing himself on the world stage in Russia four years ago. On Tuesday's showing, he is ready to elevate himself above the status of his fellow PSG superstars Messi and Neymar.
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
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The biog
From: Upper Egypt
Age: 78
Family: a daughter in Egypt; a son in Dubai and his wife, Nabila
Favourite Abu Dhabi activity: walking near to Emirates Palace
Favourite building in Abu Dhabi: Emirates Palace
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
AIR
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The%20BaaS%20ecosystem
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile
Company: Rent Your Wardrobe
Date started: May 2021
Founder: Mamta Arora
Based: Dubai
Sector: Clothes rental subscription
Stage: Bootstrapped, self-funded
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
MATCH INFO
Watford 1 (Deulofeu 80' p)
Chelsea 2 (Abraham 5', Pulisic 55')
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Nick's journey in numbers
Countries so far: 85
Flights: 149
Steps: 3.78 million
Calories: 220,000
Floors climbed: 2,000
Donations: GPB37,300
Prostate checks: 5
Blisters: 15
Bumps on the head: 2
Dog bites: 1
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Brief scores:
Toss: Pakhtunkhwa Zalmi, chose to field
Environment Agency: 193-3 (20 ov)
Ikhlaq 76 not out, Khaliya 58, Ahsan 55
Pakhtunkhwa Zalmi: 194-2 (18.3 ov)
Afridi 95 not out, Sajid 55, Rizwan 36 not out
Result: Pakhtunkhwa won by 8 wickets
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
