JEDDAH, 22 January 2006 — Saudi Arabia and Finland played out a 1-1 draw in their opening match of the LG friendly soccer tournament last night at the Prince Faisal ibn Fahd Stadium in Riyadh.
Earlier, South Korea also drew 1-1 against Greece in the first match of the tournament.
Muhammad Al-Shalhoub drew first blood in the 58th minute with a brilliantly executed free-kick from outside the penalty box.
His shot curled in the air and gave Finnish goalkeeper no chance to stop it.
The goal motivated Saudis to score more, but a strong defense foiled their attempts. Their joy came to an end in the 87th minute when the equalizer came from Finland. Saudi Arabia will play their next match against Greece on Wednesday. The first match will be played between South Korea and Finland.
