Saudi Arabia Loses to Poland as Lewandowski Finally Scores at World Cup

Poland's Robert Lewandowski, right, greets Saudi Arabia's Saud Abdulhamid at the end of the World Cup group C soccer match between Poland and Saudi Arabia, at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2022. (AP)
Poland's Robert Lewandowski, right, greets Saudi Arabia's Saud Abdulhamid at the end of the World Cup group C soccer match between Poland and Saudi Arabia, at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2022. (AP)
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Saudi Arabia Loses to Poland as Lewandowski Finally Scores at World Cup

Poland's Robert Lewandowski, right, greets Saudi Arabia's Saud Abdulhamid at the end of the World Cup group C soccer match between Poland and Saudi Arabia, at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2022. (AP)
Poland's Robert Lewandowski, right, greets Saudi Arabia's Saud Abdulhamid at the end of the World Cup group C soccer match between Poland and Saudi Arabia, at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2022. (AP)

Robert Lewandowski finally scored at the World Cup on Saturday, helping Poland beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 and boosting his team's chances of reaching the knockout stages. 

Lewandowski shed tears after scoring in the 82nd minute. He raced toward the corner with his arms outstretched, then stayed slumped on the field as teammates rushed to congratulate him. He got up, rubbed his face, and blew a kiss to the crowd. 

It was the Poland forward’s first World Cup goal in his fifth appearance at the tournament. 

The 34-year-old Lewandowski also set up the opener in the 40th minute when he kept the ball in play after goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais’ initial block, then laid it back for Piotr Zielinski to knock in. 

Al-Owais denied Lewandowski from scoring a second goal late in the match. 

Saudi Arabia were the better team for the first half and was pushed forward by enthusiastic fans in what seemed like a home game.  

Saudi Arabia will rue the first half missed penalty from Salem Al-Dawsari, who scored the winner in their historic victory over Argentina on Tuesday. 

Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny then blocked Mohammed Al-Burayk's shot from the rebound. 

Poland will next face Argentina, while Saudi Arabia will meet Mexico in their last Group C games. 

Poland needs only a point from their final match to guarantee their spot in the next round. 



‘Worse than I Thought’: Hamilton Endures Difficult Ferrari Debut

 Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)
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‘Worse than I Thought’: Hamilton Endures Difficult Ferrari Debut

 Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)

Lewis Hamilton said Sunday he found his new Ferrari "really, really hard to drive" in the wet as the seven-time world champion endured a difficult start to his career at the Scuderia.

The 40-year-old is hoping for a new lease of life after his bombshell switch from Mercedes, but it has been a steep learning curve since he joined the Italian team in January.

It culminated in a disappointing 10th in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, where he was well off the pace of McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes and behind teammate Charles Leclerc in a rain-hit race, punctuated by safety cars.

"It was very tricky and went a lot worse than I thought it would go. The car was really, really hard to drive today," he said after a race that was marred by a series of crashes in the treacherous conditions.

"For me, I'm just grateful I kept it out of the wall because that's where it wanted to go most of the time."

Hamilton was in the Ferrari not only for his first Grand Prix, but also for the first time in wet conditions.

Clearly still getting used to how his new team works, he was heard on the radio at one time telling his race engineer they had "missed a big opportunity" to capitalize strategically after he led briefly during a series of pit stops under the safety car.

A delayed switch back to intermediate rain tires dropped him back down the field, but the Briton said afterwards there had been "a lot" to take from his debut.

"Just getting acclimatized with the new power unit in the wet conditions," he said.

"The settings it requires are different, and a different way of driving and a different set-up on the steering wheel.

"I hung out as long as I could, got in the lead at one point. Just the guidance with how much more rain was coming, was missing there, so I think we missed out."