Saudi Arabia edge South Korea in Doha thriller as Donis’ side claim landmark win

Saudi Arabia secured a long-awaited victory over South Korea with a 3-2 friendly win in Doha, as manager Georgios Donis continued his strong start in charge of the national team.

Marwan Al-Sahafi put Saudi Arabia ahead in first-half stoppage time at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, scoring his first international goal on his 17th appearance for the “Green Falcons”.

The Al-Ittihad winger collected a precise through ball from Al-Nassr forward Abdullah Al-Hamdan, rounded the South Korea goalkeeper and finished into an empty net.

South Korea levelled two minutes into the second half when Hyeon Gyu converted a low cross with a powerful shot that Saudi goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais could not keep out.

Saudi Arabia restored their advantage in the 56th minute. Al-Hilal midfielder Mohamed Kanno received a pass from Lens full-back Saud Abdulhamid before driving the ball into the net.

Three minutes later, Saudi Arabia extended their lead through Al-Nassr defender Abdulelah Al-Amri. He headed in a corner delivered by Al-Hilal midfielder Nasser Al-Dawsari.

Lee Jae pulled one back for South Korea in the 68th minute by turning another low cross past Al-Owais, but Saudi Arabia held on to claim victory in the first of their two friendlies during the current international break.

The result was Saudi Arabia’s first win over South Korea since 2005, when they defeated them home and away in the qualifiers for the 2006 World Cup, winning 2-0 and 1-0 respectively.

It was the 19th meeting between the countries in friendly and competitive football since their first encounter in 1980. Before Friday’s match, Saudi Arabia had won five times, South Korea had recorded six victories and seven games had ended level.

Saudi Arabia had gone six matches without beating their opponents, with South Korea winning twice and the other four fixtures drawn.

The teams have now met seven times in friendly matches. South Korea had won two of the previous six, three had ended in draws and Saudi Arabia had won once before this latest success.

Saudi Arabia’s most notable victory over South Korea came in the semi-final of the 2000 AFC Asian Cup, when Talal Al-Meshaal scored both goals in a 2-1 win.

Their most recent competitive meeting was in the last 16 of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup. The match finished 1-1 after 90 minutes before South Korea progressed to the quarter-finals on penalties.

Saudi Arabia will play Uzbekistan in their next friendly in Doha on Tuesday.