Four days after Nigeria struggled to a 2-2 draw with Saudi Arabia, Mali played against the same opponents in an international friendly at the Estadio Municipal de Portimao, defeating the Asian giants 3-3. 1, Soccernet.ng reported.
On Friday at the same venue, the Super Eagles were held to a thrilling draw, but a free kick deflected by Mohamed Kanno in the 10th minute of stoppage time gave Saudi Arabia a share of the spoils.
Nigeria were favorites for their first win against Saudi Arabia, but conceded their first goal after an hour after Salman Al Faraj’s ambitious free-kick evaded goalkeeper Francis Uzoho.
The Super Eagles equalized within eight minutes with Abdulela Al Amri’s own goal. Kelechi then gave the former African champions the lead with a powerful shot from Iheanacho.
When victory seemed certain, Sugano saved Saudi Arabia with the final kick of the match.
However, Green Falcons completely lost against Mali.
Mali, on a three-game winning streak, was looking for a fourth victim after recently defeating Congo, South Sudan and Uganda.
Moussa Doumbia took the lead in the 14th minute and Les Aigle quickly broke through the Saudi defense.
Real Sociedad striker Hamari Traore doubled Mali’s lead just before half-time and the West African looked relaxed during the break.
After the break, Salem Al Dausari closed the gap for Saudi Arabia and they were on the verge of a comeback, but in the 70th minute, Auxerre’s Racine Shinayoko broke through and Mali regained a two-goal lead.
This is Mali’s first win against Saudi Arabia, as the first match of 2019 ended in a 1-1 draw.
It will be recalled that Nigeria defeated Mozambique 10-a-side 3-2 in another friendly in Portugal on Monday after drawing 2-2 with Saudi Arabia.
The Super Eagles will be back in action in November, taking on Lesotho and Zimbabwe in the opening games of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
