After the 0-7 loss to Japan on September 5, coach Branko Ivankovic made four personnel adjustments to the starting lineup to play against Saudi Arabia. Notably, naturalized players Fernanduo and Abdulwal joined Wu Lei in attack.
With home advantage and reasonable adjustments, the Chinese team started the game well. They took the lead in the 14th minute. Jiang Shenglong's header caused Ali Lajami to score an own goal.
Five minutes later, the Chinese team had another advantage when Mohamed Kanno received a red card for hitting Jiang Shenglong.
However, after the first few minutes of the match, the Saudi Arabia team regained control of the game. They controlled the midfield well and started to put pressure on the home team. In the 39th minute, Hassan Kadesh headed home the equalizer, 1-1, after a pass from Nasser Al-Dawsari.
In the second half, the Chinese team pressed the field to find a goal to increase the score. In the 53rd minute, center back Wang Shangyuan - who entered the field in the 46th minute to replace Jiang Guangtai - headed the goal. However, after checking VAR, the referee did not recognize the goal due to an offside.
Despite playing with one less player, coach Mancini's team still played well, outperforming their opponents in speed and coordination. They created many opportunities from counter-attacks, especially on the left wing by Salem Al-Dawsari. In the 63rd minute, this striker almost increased the score but his shot hit the crossbar.
During the remaining time, the Chinese team lost their physical strength. Taking advantage of that, the Saudi Arabia team attacked. This effort paid off.
In the 90th minute, center back Hassan Kadesh headed the ball powerfully, raising the score to 2-1 for the away team. This was also Kadesh's second goal in this match.
In the end, the Chinese team lost 1-2 to Saudi Arabia. This result made Ivankovic's team lose the second consecutive match in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. Meanwhile, with this first victory, the Saudi team has earned 4 points.
