Robert Lewandowski was in his best performance as Poland earned a crucial victory over Saudi Arabia, leaving Group C wide open.
The Barcelona forward also equalled Pele’s record of 77 international goals. He is now behind the likes of Ronaldo and Messi as the top goal scorers in the history of the men’s international football.
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The polish striker capitalised on an error by Saudi Arabia midfielder Abdelulelah Al Malki before sending a composed finish past onrushing goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owais.
Lewandowski was visibly emotional after ending a run of four World Cup games without finding the net.
Piotr Zielinski had given Poland a first-half lead from Lewandowski’s cutback, but Saudi Arabia were awarded a penalty five minutes later for Krystian Bielik’s foul on Saleh Al Shehri.
Wojciech Szczesny kept out Feras Al Brikan’s effort before producing a sensational one-handed stop to prevent Mohammed Al Burayk from burying the rebound.
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Lewandowski’s late strike ended Saudi Arabia’s hopes of building on Tuesday’s remarkable victory over Argentina and boosts Poland’s hopes of reaching the last 16 for the first time since 1986, when they were beaten 4-0 by Brazil in the first knockout round.
Argentina will be looking forward to get their 2022 World Cup campaign back on track when they take on Mexico at the Lusail Stadium later in the day.