Marcus Rashford's remarkable resurgence on the pitch is completely unrelated to the Manchester United departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, according to club great Andrew Cole.

Rashford scored United's second in Sunday's 2-0 EFL Cup final win over Newcastle United, as the Red Devils ended a trophy drought that stretched back almost six years.

That was his 25th goal of the season across all competitions, already three more than his previous best return for a full campaign, and United still have at least 17 matches to play in 2022-23.

Rashford has looked more confident and threatening all season, but his form has hit new heights since the World Cup – in that time, his 17 goals (all competitions) is five more than any other player from the top five leagues, and he is one of only two (Victor Osimhen, 11) to reach double figures for non-penalty (np) goals (16).

Those come from a np-xG (expected goals) of just 8.0, meaning he is scoring twice as many goals as the average player would expect given the quality of his chances.

Rashford's positive 8.0 np-xG differential since the World Cup considerably exceeds that of every other player from the top five leagues, with James Ward Prowse second on 4.3 (six np goals, 1.7 np-xG).

This is a far cry from Rashford's form last season when his goals frequency of 0.27 per 90 minutes was the worst of his United career – the 0.78 goals every 90 minutes this term is comfortably his best such return.

Given the biggest upturn in Rashford's form has come since the World Cup, some have speculated whether Ronaldo's exit – which was confirmed during Qatar 2022 – has had something to do with it.

But Cole, a treble winner with United in 1999, refuses to accept that, convinced there is a simpler explanation.

He told Stats Perform: "I'm an individual. I'm not going to get involved in the Ronaldo thing because he left. Ronaldo wasn't there 18 months ago when Marcus Rashford was struggling.

"So, because Ronaldo's left now, all of a sudden [there's a perception] it's because he's left. It doesn't make sense for me. When Ronaldo wasn't at the club, Marcus found himself in a bit of form that he couldn't get himself out of, so I'm not having that.

"The [Erik] Ten Hag effect, I think. No doubt, the manager will be believing in him, telling him how good he is. But ultimately, as individuals, he could have taken his eye off the ball a little bit with what he was doing off the field.

"It could have been a little bit of that as well, but to see him in this really fit form now, the way he's playing, I think it's testament to him. For me, personally, it doesn't really matter what anyone else does with you.

"Monday to Friday, once you cross the white line, it's you as an individual, and also Monday to Friday, someone's telling you how great you are.

"If you don't believe how great you are, once you cross the white line, it makes no difference what anyone else tells you because you've got to tell yourself that.

"I'm looking at him now, he seems to be telling himself, 'I'm at that level that I want to be at'. That's why he's playing so well."

But with spells of such form from one individual come questions of dependency, or over reliance.

Since the World Cup, no team across the top five leagues has scored more than United (43), while their average of 2.3 every game sees them rank sixth, which again is commendable given the top five have all played at least six games less than Ten Hag's side.

However, no other United player has scored more than seven goals (all competitions) this season. While Ten Hag has received due praise for inspiring a huge improvement around the club, it is difficult to imagine them being on their current trajectory without Rashford's form.

And Rashford's numbers since the World Cup represent something of an anomaly – relying on him to score double his xG for the rest of the season would be unfair and unlikely.

This concern is not lost on Cole, who during the 1998-99 treble-winning season was one of five United players to score at least 10 goals.

"Do we need that depth? Of course we do, if we look at all the top teams in Europe, they have that depth," he continued.

"And yeah, I would say if [Rashford] did pick up an injury, which naturally I don't want, you're going to turn around say, 'where are the goals going to come from?'

"Because they're not really being spread around the team. Marcus has got a majority of them. Yeah, you might get sporadic [contributions]: Antony might get one in four games or whatever; Casemiro scored [on Sunday]; [Jadon] Sancho is getting himself back and is getting a goal every now and then.

"But if you're going to be challenging for major honours, you've got to have goals coming from all areas, and at this moment time Manchester United are relying on Marcus because he's in that form.

"No doubt they'll look to address that problem [a lack of goals elsewhere] in the summer."

Marcus Thuram will leave Borussia Moenchengladbach at the end of this season when his contract expires.

As a result, the 25-year-old French forward is garnering plenty of interest from top European clubs.

Thuram has scored 14 goals in all competitions this season for Gladbach, having been part of France's 2022 World Cup squad.

TOP STORY – THURAM OFFERED TO BARCELONA

Marcus Thuram's agent has offered the French forward to Barcelona as an off-season signing, according to Mundo Deportivo.

Thuram has interest from Chelsea, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid and Inter.

Barcelona's economic challenges mean they have prioritised signing players on free transfers in recent times with Thuram offering that plus flexibility in attack.

ROUND-UP

– Fichajes claims Cristiano Ronaldo wants Sergio Ramos to join him at Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr, with the defender's contract with PSG to expire at the end of this season. Ramos will leave it late to make a decision, holding out hope for a PSG extension.

– Liverpool will battle Bayern Munich in the off-season for the signature of Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic, reports Calciomercatoweb.

– Barcelona, Real Madrid and Chelsea are all interested in Inter's Marcelo Brozovic, with the Serie A club open to selling him, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.

– Manchester United are weighing up a move for Bayer Leverkusen right-back Jeremie Frimpong, reports Football Insider. Fabrizio Romano claims numerous top clubs are interested in the Dutch defender.

– La Gazzetta dello Sport claims Liverpool are tracking Inter's Nicolo Barella as they look to bolster their midfield options.

– West Ham, Fulham, Crystal Palace and Brentford are all circling for Milan forward Olivier Giroud,  who is open to a return to England, claims The Sun.

Cristiano Ronaldo outclassed another Saudi Pro League defence as his second hat-trick in three games earned Al Nassr a 3-0 win over Damak on Saturday.

The former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward had his treble by half-time, following up his four-goal haul two weeks previously against Al Wehda.

Ronaldo's first against Damak was an 18th-minute penalty, awarded after a handball by Farouk Chafai, while his second was a fierce left-footed strike from 20 yards five minutes later as defenders stood off.

The hat-trick was sealed in the 44th minute after a fast break out of defence, with Abdulrahman Ghareeb driving down the left before feeding a pass through to Ayman Yahya.

Yahya might have shot but elected to lay the ball off for 38-year-old Ronaldo to smash home from 10 yards.

Ronaldo hit 44 hat-tricks in his legendary Madrid career, becoming the Spanish giants' record scorer, while he also netted three across two spells with United, and added three trebles during a three-year stint at Juventus.

Liverpool reportedly view Bayern Munich's Ryan Gravenberch and Borussia Dortmund's Jude Bellingham as their ideal central midfield pairing of the future.

Liverpool's interest in 19-year-old Bellingham has been well-documented, and they are believed to be one of the front-runners to secure his services, along with Real Madrid.

Gravenberch, 20, arrived at Bayern prior to the season from Ajax for an €18.5million fee, but he has made only one start this Bundesliga campaign, along with 12 appearances as a substitute.

Liverpool are due for a midfield overhaul this off-season with 33-year-old Jordan Henderson and 32-year-old Thiago reaching their primes, and the club appear to be preparing for an injection of youth.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL ENVISION GRAVENBERCH AS KEY COG OF FUTURE MIDFIELD

According to Sport 1, Liverpool are "closely following" Gravenberch's situation in Munich, and have begun gathering background information about the young Netherlands international.

The report claims that Bayern are not looking to ship him off after just one season, but Gravenberch himself may indicate he wants out if his playing time situation does not start trending in the right direction.

With his contract tying him to the Bundesliga side until 2027, Gravenberch has no leverage to force his way to the Premier League, but that will not stop Liverpool from dreaming about potentially moving forward with Gravenberch, Bellingham and breakout talent Stefan Bajcetic all aged under 21.

ROUND-UP

– Planeta Real Madrid is reporting Paris Saint-Germain will look to secure Vinicius Junior if Kylian Mbappe leaves for the Spanish capital.

– According to The Mirror, Sergio Aguero claims Lionel Messi is strongly considering a move back to childhood club Newell's Old Boys.

– Atletico Madrid loanee Joao Felix would like to make his move to Chelsea permanent, per Fichajes.

– Marca is reporting Cristiano Ronaldo's team Al Nassr have been sounding out Sergio Ramos' interest in a move to Saudi Arabia.

– According to Fabrizio Romano, after rejecting an advance from Newcastle United, Flamengo have handed 18-year-old midfielder Matheus Franca a new contract that includes a €200m release clause.

Liverpool midfielder Stefan Bajcetic has reportedly caught the attention of LaLiga powerhouses Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Bajcetic, 18, scored his first Premier League goal in a short substitute appearance against Aston Villa on Boxing Day, and after impressing in a pair of January FA Cup starts, he forced his way into the first team.

He has started their past four Premier League fixtures as well as Tuesday's Champions League Final rematch against Madrid, indicating a rapid rise in the eyes of Jurgen Klopp.

The Spaniard left Celta Vigo in 2020 to head to the Premier League, but his home country could soon come calling to bring him back.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL TEEN CAPTURES IMAGINATION OF EUROPE'S ELITE

According to Fichajes, both Barcelona and Madrid "have been closely following his evolution", and they believe Bajcetic possesses the qualities necessary to perform at the highest level.

Barcelona reportedly view him as "an ideal piece to form a future midfield with Pedri and Gavi", while Madrid would like him to be the successor to ageing veterans Luka Modric and Toni Kroos.

His contract ties him to Anfield until 2027, but the Spanish giants could try to test his transfer value as soon as this off-season.

ROUND-UP

– The Daily Mail is reporting Aston Villa will listen to offers for 30-year-old goalkeeper and World Cup hero Emiliano Martinez after the season with the hope that a significant transfer fee could fund a mini-rebuild.

– Leicester City will look to sell James Maddison at the end of the season if they can not convince him to sign a new contract, with Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham named as interested parties, per Football Insider.

– According to The Telegraph, 31-year-old midfielder N'Golo Kante will sign a new contract to remain at Chelsea.

– Gazzetta dello Sport is reporting Inter will look to move on from wing-backs Denzel Dumfries and Robin Gosens at the end of the season, with Dumfries a potential piece in a swap deal for Chelsea loanee Romelu Lukaku.

– According to the Evening Standard, Saudi Arabian clubs – including Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr – are circling 30-year-old Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha with the belief he would be open to a Middle East move for the right price.

Ruud Gullit has been "pleasantly surprised" by Erik ten Hag's early success as Manchester United manager and believes the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo was key.

Ten Hag left Ajax to take the United job prior to this season, only for the Premier League giants to endure a difficult start to the campaign.

Their fortunes have since turned around dramatically, however. United are third in the Premier League, still in the FA Cup and Europa League and through to the EFL Cup final.

The Red Devils will play that final against Newcastle United on Sunday, a repeat of the 1999 FA Cup final in which Gullit was the Magpies' manager.

Victory in that game would give Ten Hag silverware to go with the clear progress United have made, but Gullit has already been suitably impressed by his fellow Dutchman and his handling of Ronaldo.

The United great pushed for a move away from the club, which was finally granted during the World Cup break after he took part in an interview criticising Ten Hag and others at Old Trafford.

Ronaldo is now playing for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, while Ten Hag's United are flying high.

"I am pleasantly surprised," Gullit told Marca. "The Dutch league is not the same as the English one, but Ten Hag has a philosophy that sticks.

"In addition, he managed well in the Cristiano case. Ronaldo didn't want to play, he wanted to leave, and he made the decision not to play.

"That gave the team the feeling that 'hey, with this guy, if you do well, you play'.

"Now, they compete well, young players are involved and they feel they have a chance. Even [Harry] Maguire is fine."

Gullit added of the Ronaldo saga: "The situation was handled like this, and now he is in a place where he is happy. Ronaldo is happy, and so is Ten Hag."

Al Nassr went top of the Saudi Pro League after Cristiano Ronaldo set up both of their goals in a 2-1 win over Al Taawoun.

It was confirmed this week that the Saudi champions will feature in the Club World Cup later this year as the host nation representative.

Ronaldo will surely be desperate to feature in FIFA's flagship club competition and the five-time Ballon d'Or winner followed up his four-goal showing against Al Wehda with another match-winning turn on Friday.

Having teed up Abdulrahman Ghareeb's 17th-minute opener, Ronaldo supplied his second assist of the game to set up Abdullah Madu for Al Nassr's winner with 12 minutes of normal time remaining.

Ronaldo's first assist was a wonderful, first-time, sweeping pass into the path of Ghareeb, who still had work to do to shrug off his marker and beat Al Taawoun's goalkeeper.

The 38-year-old Ronaldo might not have known too much about his touch for the winner as he, perhaps unintentionally, cushioned a team-mate's shot back for Madu to drill into a gaping net, with the VAR awarding the goal after Ronaldo was initially flagged for offside.

The victory took Al Nassr back above Al Ittihad on goal difference.

"Top of the league and three important points," Ronaldo tweeted after the match. "Great team work!"

Karim Benzema has surpassed Raul as Real Madrid's second-highest goalscorer in LaLiga.

Benzema moved onto 229 LaLiga goals, from 428 appearances in the competition, as he slotted in from the penalty spot to nose Carlo Ancelotti's side into a 2-0 lead against Elche on Wednesday.

Marcos Asensio's superb goal gave Los Blancos an early lead at the Santiago Bernabeu, with Benzema doubling their advantage just past the half-hour mark after Enzo Roco had handled in Elche's box.

Benzema subsequently scored his 230th LaLiga goal before half-time, converting his second spot-kick of the match.

Madrid great Raul took 550 matches to net his 228 LaLiga goals, meaning Benzema has overtaken him in 122 fewer games.

Cristiano Ronaldo, who is Madrid's record goalscorer, stands way clear of Benzema on 311 goals from just 292 LaLiga appearances.

Benzema was already Madrid's second-highest goalscorer across all competitions, having surpassed Raul last year in that regard.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe have all been named on FIFA's FIFPro Men's Team of the Year 26-player shortlist for 2022.

Ronaldo's inclusion was arguably the major surprise after a difficult back half to the year where he was dropped by both Manchester United and Portugal, ultimately parting ways with the Red Devils in November.

The Portuguese star has made the Team of the Year, along with Messi, every year since 2007, but will face stiff competition among the forwards alongside Erling Haaland, Mbappe, Neymar, Robert Lewandowski and reigning Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema.

Last year, four forwards were named in the final XI; Ronaldo, Haaland, Lewandowski and Messi.

World Cup stars Jude Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez are named in the shortlist for the first time in midfield, alongside Casemiro, Kevin de Bruyne, Gavi, Luka Modric, Pedri and Federico Valverde.

The defenders nominated are Joao Cancelo, Virgil van Dijk, Antonio Rudiger, Thiago Silva, Alphonso Davies, Josko Gvardiol, Achraf Hakimi and Theo Hernandez.

The goalkeepers in contention are Alisson Becker, Thibaut Courtois and Emiliano Martinez.

Cristiano Ronaldo hit yet another milestone as he scored the 500th league goal of his remarkable career in Al Nassr's 4-0 victory over Al Wehda.

The Portugal captain, who joined Rudi Garcia's side on a free transfer after his acrimonious Manchester United departure, netted all four goals as his new club moved top of the Saudi Pro League on goal difference.

Fresh from opening his account for Al Nassr in their 2-2 draw with Al Fateh last time out, Ronaldo's milestone strike came in the 21st minute when he drilled a low shot past Abdulquddus Atiah.

He added a second to double the visitors' lead five minutes before half-time, latching onto a neat throughball before slotting home.

The former Real Madrid and Juventus forward completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot in the 53rd minute, before getting his fourth and rounding off a commanding victory just after the hour mark.

Ronaldo and Al Nassr are back in action a week on Friday, when they welcome to Al Taawoun to King Saud University Stadium.

Life is good at Manchester United right now – and it might be about to get better.

Erik ten Hag has guided United to third in the Premier League, perhaps still in title contention, while they will face Newcastle United in the EFL Cup final.

Rivals Manchester City and Liverpool are facing various crises, and United's ambitions moving forward could be boosted by a lucrative takeover.

After making only loan signings in January as the Glazer family consider selling up, the outlook at Old Trafford might be about to change entirely.

TOP STORY – QATARI-BACKED MAN UTD BID DUE IN DAYS

According to the Daily Mail, a group of Qatari investors plan to buy United and give manager Ten Hag "the financial backing to lead the club back to the top".

The Glazers set a deadline of mid-February for bids, and an offer from the group is expected in the coming days.

The report says the group are confident their bid would "blow the competition out of the water".

This interest in United follows on the back of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with the investors eager to secure ownership of "the crown jewels" of the footballing world.

ROUND-UP

– The Telegraph is reporting Manchester City's pursuit of Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham is at risk of being torpedoed by their potential financial breaches.

– According to Mundo Deportivo, Cristiano Ronaldo's team Al Nassr have offered 34-year-old Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets a contract worth €18million per season.

– Manchester United and Liverpool will both make a run at Eintracht Frankfurt striker Randal Kolo Muani, who impressed for France at the World Cup, per L'Equipe.

– Calciomercato is reporting Juventus will likely allow striker Dusan Vlahovic to leave at the end of the season if they receive a bid in the range of €90m.

– According to the Northern Echo, Newcastle United have made 26-year-old Leicester City midfielder James Maddison a key target.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first goal for Al Nassr to salvage a 2-2 draw against Al Fateh on Friday.

The Portugal captain, who moved to Saudi Arabia on a free transfer after his Manchester United contract was cancelled by mutual consent, opened his account with a late penalty at Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Sports City Stadium.

Saudi Pro League leaders Al Nassr twice came from behind to secure a point on the road.

Ronaldo got up and running in his third game for his new club to deny sixth-placed Al Fateh.

The 37-year-old forward calmly dispatched his spot-kick in the 92nd minute before his team-mate Talisca, who scored Al Nassr's first goal to cancel out Cristian Tello's opener, was sent off in a dramatic finale.

Ronaldo had scored twice for Riyadh All-Stars in a 5-4 friendly draw against a Paris Saint-Germain side that included Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe last month.

Hussein El-Shahat matched the exploits of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale by scoring at a third Club World Cup as Al Ahly beat Auckland City 3-0 in the first round.

El-Shahat opened the scoring with a low 25-yard drive on the stroke of half-time in Tangier on Wednesday, before neat one-on-one finishes from Mohamed Sherif and Percy Tau made Al Ahly's victory safe.

The winger's effort took him to three goals in three editions of the tournament, having also found the net for Al Ain in 2018 and with his current club in 2021.

Ronaldo, Messi and Bale are the only other players to net at three separate Club World Cups, while Ronaldo is the competition's all-time top scorer with seven goals.

Ronaldo is also the only player to score for two separate champions at the tournament, doing so for Manchester United in 2008 and Real Madrid in 2016 and 2017, while Messi found the net during Barcelona's triumphant 2009, 2011 and 2015 campaigns.

Wednesday's game was also notable for referee Ma Ning announcing the rationale for his decision to send off Auckland's Adam Mitchell to the crowd after being sent to the VAR monitor, as part of a 12-month trial across FIFA tournaments.

Al Ahly's reward for their comprehensive win is a second-round tie against the Seattle Sounders on Saturday, the winners of which will face European champions Real Madrid in the semi-finals.

Morocco's Wydad Casablanca will face Al Hilal in the other second-round fixture, with the victors going on to face Copa Libertadores champions Flamengo for a spot in the final.

Cristiano Ronaldo has scored many famous goals.

Undoubtedly, though, one of his most celebrated strikes came 15 years ago, on January 30, 2008.

On a winter evening at Old Trafford, Harry Redknapp's Portsmouth rocked up in fine form on the road, having won seven of their 12 away games in the Premier League.

Yet Ronaldo, in the midst of a 31-goal season in the top tier, was the difference. 

Having put Manchester United ahead in the 10th minute, Ronaldo stepped up, just under 30 yards out from goal, three minutes later.

His free-kick, taken in what would become his trademark style, went up, over the wall and swerved remarkably into the right-hand corner. David James, the Portsmouth goalkeeper, had no chance.

That goal is often thought of as the typical Ronaldo free-kick. Power, panache and pinpoint accuracy.

But is Ronaldo actually as good as a free-kick taker as that goal might suggest? Using Opta data, Stats Perform has taken a look.

Quantity, not quality?

Since that goal against Portsmouth up until the day his second spell at United ended (November 23, 2022), Ronaldo had more shots from direct free-kicks than any other player in Europe's top five leagues.

Of the 645 shots Ronaldo had, 41 resulted in a goal. That is from 700 club games, across stints at United, Real Madrid and Juventus.

On the face of it, that goal tally does not stand out as particularly impressive, at least given the fact that Ronaldo netted 619 times in total.

Yet he is behind only Lionel Messi (who else?) when it comes to goals from direct free-kicks, with the Barcelona great scoring on 51 occasions from such situations.

That gives Messi an 8.1 per cent conversion rate from free-kicks in that timeframe, in contrast to Ronaldo's 6.3 per cent.

Naturally, given their status in the game, Ronaldo and Messi will almost always pull rank when it comes to set-pieces, especially at a free-kick in a dangerous position.

Miralem Pjanic, who ranks third for direct free-kick goals and was a club-mate of both players at Barca and Juve respectively, boasts better conversion rate than either (nine per cent).

Neymar's 13 goals from 147 attempts gives him an 8.8 per cent success rate, while James Ward-Prowse's 12 per cent (15 from 125, though this figure of course does not account for his strike against Everton earlier in January) is close to double what Ronaldo managed.

Indeed, when ranked against players from Europe's big five leagues that scored 10 or more direct free-kicks between January 31, 2008 and November 23, 2022, only Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Dani Parejo had lower conversion rates than Ronaldo.

Club by club

So, having established that Ronaldo's free-kick finishing was somewhat erratic following that stunner against Portsmouth, let's check on how he stacked up at each club.

Across his career in Europe's top five leagues, Ronaldo netted 48 free-kicks in all competitions, from 782 shots (6.1 per cent).

Thirteen of those goals came at United, with five each in his final two seasons of his first spell at the club.

Indeed, Ronaldo's peak when it came to free-kicks was definitely between the 2007-08 season and the 2013-14 campaign, when he scored 35 times from that type of dead-ball situation.

His best single season tally was six, in the 2009-10 season – his first at Madrid.

From 2014-15 onwards he did not manage more than three free-kick goals during a season, while he scored only twice from 86 such attempts while at Juve, and managed no goals from four free-kicks in his second stint at United.

One of the greats?

As well as his effort against Portsmouth, Ronaldo has many other memorable free-kicks in the bank.

His stunning, 40-yard strike against Arsenal in the 2009 Champions League semi-final; a mesmerising hit from even further out in a Madrid derby in 2012; and who can forget that spellbinding, hat-trick sealing effort that secured a last-gasp draw for Portugal against Spain in a 3-3 thriller at the 2018 World Cup.

Ronaldo might have gone off the boil from dead balls since the halcyon days either side of his move from Manchester to Madrid, yet there's no doubting that when he hits them true, there's not much any goalkeeper can do.

While he may not go down as one of the greatest free-kick takers in history statistically, he has definitely been a scorer of some great free-kicks down the years.

And who knows, maybe there'll be more to come in Saudi Arabia.

Cristiano Ronaldo was unable to send Al Nassr into the Saudi Super Cup final as they went down 3-1 to Al Ittihad.

Goals for Romarinho, Abderrazzaq Hamed Allah and Muhannad Al Shanqiti saw Al Ittihad, coached by former Wolves and Tottenham boss Nuno Espirito Santo, set up a showdown with Al-Fayha in Riyadh.

Ronaldo played the entire match on Thursday, coming close to an equaliser in the first half when he headed straight at Al Ittihad goalkeeper Marcelo Grohe.

Al Ittihad compounded his frustrations by racing down the other end to make it 2-0, though Talisca pulled one back for Al Nassr after the break.

Ronaldo drilled a free-kick just over prior to Talisca's strike, yet despite piling on the pressure, Al Nassr were opened up again late on, with Al Shanqiti sealing Al Ittihad's progression.

It means Ronaldo's wait for a first official goal in Saudi Arabia will stretch into a third match.