Saudi Arabia held firm against a dominant Japan to secure a crucial point on Tuesday, as Herve Renard’s squad played out a goalless draw with the Samurai Blue at Saitama Stadium in Group C of the 2026 World Cup Asian Qualifiers third round.
The Green Falcons added a fourth point to their tally in this international window, following their 2-0 victory over China in Riyadh on Thursday. With this result, they now stand at 10 points, keeping their hopes alive for the remaining automatic qualification spot for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Meanwhile, Japan remains atop Group C, having dropped points for only the second time in the campaign. The draw extends Hajime Moriyasu’s already-qualified side to 20 points from eight matches, further solidifying their dominance.
With their World Cup spot already secured, the hosts dictated proceedings despite Moriyasu making six changes from the team that sealed qualification with a win against Bahrain on Thursday.
Daichi Kamada, who netted Japan’s opening goal in their previous outing at Saitama Stadium, was introduced into the starting line-up in place of Takumi Minamino. Additionally, Yukinari Sugawara, Kota Takai, Ao Tanaka, Keito Nakamura, and Daizen Maeda were all handed starts.
It was Glasgow Celtic ace Maeda who came closest to breaking the deadlock early on, latching onto Kamada’s incisive through ball in the ninth minute and unleashing a powerful first-time strike past Nawaf Al Aqidi, only for the effort to cannon off the left post.
Just two minutes later, Maeda found himself in another promising position, but he was unable to capitalize on Nakamura’s inviting ball across the face of goal after the Reims winger had surged into space behind the Saudi defence.
Maeda’s relentless pressing unsettled the visitors, and he nearly reaped the rewards in the 18th minute when he won possession near Al Aqidi’s goal, but his shot was directed too close to the Saudi keeper.
The Green Falcons struggled to make an impact in the opening stages as Japan asserted control. A rare attacking moment for Saudi Arabia came when Mohannad Al Shanqiti sent a header over Zion Suzuki’s crossbar, but normal service quickly resumed as Takefusa Kubo’s long-range effort sailed over the target.
Wataru Endo’s header missed the mark, Maeda failed to keep his shot on target, and Ko Itakura saw his headed attempt blocked as Japan maintained their dominance in the second half but found no way past the increasingly resolute Saudi defence.
With nine minutes left on the clock, Junya Ito nearly shattered Saudi Arabia’s resistance when Kamada’s incisive pass split the backline, but substitute winger Ito’s strike was instinctively tipped over the bar by Al Aqidi.
Hiroki Ito then fired a shot high over from distance before Suzuki was called into action to clear a dangerous situation after an errant backpass nearly allowed Turki Al Ammar a chance to snatch a late winner. In the end, Japan held firm to preserve their unbeaten record in the qualifiers, while Saudi Arabia earned a hard-fought point in their quest for World Cup qualification.