Saudi Arabia beat Indonesia 3-2 to stay one win from 2026 World Cup

Saudi Arabia came from behind to beat Indonesia 3-2 on Wednesday in Jeddah, moving within a single victory of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. Feras Al-Buraikan scored twice and Saleh Abu Al-Shamat added a goal as the hosts recovered from an early penalty by Kevin Diks to take control of Group B in the fourth round of Asian qualifying.

Indonesia took the lead in the 11th minute when Diks converted a spot kick after a handball from Hassan Al-Tambakhti. Saudi Arabia answered six minutes later when Abu Al-Shamat curled a right-footed strike from the edge of the area past the goalkeeper to level the match. With nine minutes left in the first half, Al-Buraikan converted a penalty after a shirt pull in the box that referee Ahmad Al-Ali confirmed following a review on the pitchside monitor. Al-Buraikan doubled his tally in the 62nd minute, pouncing on a rebound to finish from close range. Diks converted a second penalty in the 89th minute to make for a tense finale, and Saudi midfielder Mohammed Kanno was sent off in stoppage time, but the hosts held on for the win.

The match featured two video assistant referee interventions that directly influenced play. The first led to Saudi...