Cape Verde Islands vs Saudi Arabia
Cape Verde Islands and Saudi Arabia settle for stalemate
A goalless draw keeps both sides locked in a tight World Cup contest.
Neither Cape Verde Islands nor Saudi Arabia could find the net in a match that ended 0-0, reflecting a cautious and evenly matched encounter. The result matched Fipster's prediction of a draw, though the exact scoreline was slightly off. Both teams will take a point from this tight World Cup fixture.
Analysis
As the FIFA World Cup 2026 group stage progresses, Cape Verde Islands and Saudi Arabia face off in what promises to be a tightly contested match. Both teams have shown comparable squad quality and recent form, setting the stage for an evenly matched encounter.
Cape Verde Islands enter this fixture as World Cup debutants, having qualified directly with a strong campaign. Saudi Arabia, with six prior World Cup appearances and a best finish reaching the Round of 16 in 1994, bring valuable tournament experience. Both squads feature one player each competing in top-five European leagues, highlighting a balanced calibre between the sides.
The teams' recent form and squad composition suggest a closely fought contest. Cape Verde Islands boast a slightly better recent form with 2 points per game compared to Saudi Arabia's 1.25. Key players such as Cape Verde's Logan Costa and Saudi Arabia's Saud Abdulhamid, both active in top European leagues, underline the parity. Defensive solidity from Cape Verde's Diney Borges and midfield creativity from Saudi's Mohamed Kanno will be pivotal. Set-piece threats from defenders on both sides add an intriguing tactical layer.
Prediction
Given the balanced squad calibre and recent form, the most probable outcome is a draw, with a 59% confidence level. The predicted scoreline is 1-1, reflecting the teams' evenly matched capabilities and tactical approaches at this stage of the tournament.
Outcome probability
Key Insights
Cape Verde's Defensive Solidity vs Saudi Attack
Diney Borges' strong tackling and interceptions could disrupt Saudi's key attackers like Salem Al Dawsari.
Saudi Arabia's Midfield Passing Accuracy
Mohamed Kanno's 88% passing accuracy provides Saudi with a creative edge in midfield control.
Kevin Lenini's Recent Scoring Form
Kevin Lenini scored in last match and plays full minutes, boosting Cape Verde's scoring chances.
Set-piece Threat from Defenders
Both teams have defenders scoring recently (Al Amri and Cape Verde defenders), set-pieces likely key.
No Significant Injuries Reported
Both teams have full squads available, ensuring tactical plans can be executed as expected.
Key Takeaways
Expect a competitive and tactical battle between Cape Verde Islands and Saudi Arabia, with neither side likely to dominate. Both teams will aim to secure valuable points, but a shared result appears the most fitting conclusion to this Group Stage encounter.
- Cape Verde Islands are World Cup debutants in 2026.
- Saudi Arabia have appeared in six World Cups, best finish Round of 16 (1994).
- Both teams qualified directly for the tournament.
- Each team has one player in top-five European leagues: Logan Costa (Cape Verde) and Saud Abdulhamid (Saudi Arabia).
- Cape Verde Islands have a recent form of 2 points per game over the last 12 months.
- Saudi Arabia's recent form is 1.25 points per game over the last 12 months.
- Both teams have full squads available with no significant injuries.
- The match is part of the Group Stage - 3 phase of the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Player Insights
Standout players Fipster expects to impact the match — curated highlights, not full squad lists
Home — Cape Verde Islands
Away — Saudi Arabia
Form as the teams went into this match — excludes this result and anything since.
Team Comparison
Season shape — attack, defence, form, clean sheets & win rate
Home vs Away comparison
Goal difference in each of the last few fixtures — above the line is a net win, below is a net loss
Season comparison
Goals scored & conceded, goal difference and clean sheets across the season
Halftime Performance
What each side does once the whistle goes for half time
Streaks
Recent-form runs — each side’s most-recent game meets in the middle
Head to Head
FIFA world ranking
Saud Abdulhamid
Yellow Card
Wagner Pina
Yellow Card
Wagner Pina
Yellow Card
Hassan Tambakti
Abdullah Al Khaibari
Willy Semedo
Livramento
Livramento
Willy Semedo
Sultan Mandash
Sultan Mandash
Salem Al Dawsari
Salem Al Dawsari
Nasser Al Dawsari
Yellow Card
Jamiro Monteiro
Ryan Mendes
Nawaf Boushal
Feras Al Brikan
Yellow Card
Wagner Pina
Match Statistics
Cape Verde Islands
4-1-4-1Starting XI
- 1VózinhaG
- 3Diney BorgesD
- 4PicoD
- 6Kevin PinaM
- 8João PauloD
- 10Jamiro MonteiroM
- 14Deroy DuarteM
- 17Willy SemedoM
- 19D. LivramentoF
- 20Ryan MendesM
- 24Wagner PinaD
Substitutes
- 2StopiraD
- 5Logan CostaD
- 7Jovane CabralF
- 9Gilson BenchimolF
- 11Garry RodriguesF
- 12Márcio RosaG
- 15L. DuarteM
- 16Yannick SemedoM
- 21Nuno da CostaF
- 22S. MoreiraD
- 23C. dos SantosG
- 25Kelvin PiresD
- 26Hélio VarelaF
Saudi Arabia
4-4-2Starting XI
- 4Abdulelah Al AmriD
- 5Hassan TambaktiD
- 6Nasser Al DawsariM
- 9Feras Al BrikanF
- 10Salem Al DawsariM
- 12Saud AbdulhamidD
- 13Nawaf BoushalD
- 15Abdullah Al KhaibariM
- 20Sultan MandashM
- 21Mohammed Al OwaisG
- 23Mohamed KannoF
Substitutes
- 1Nawaf Al AqidiG
- 2Ali MajrashiD
- 3Ali LajamiD
- 7Musab Al JuwayrM
- 8Ayman YahyaM
- 11Saleh Al ShehriF
- 14Hassan KadeshD
- 16Ziyad Al JohaniM
- 17Khalid Al GhannamF
- 18Ala Al Haji
- 18Ala Al HajjiM
- 19Abdullah Al HamdanF
- 22Ahmed Al KassarG
- 24Moteb Al HarbiD
- 25Jehad Abdullatif AhmD
- 25J. Thakri
- 26Mohammed Abu Al ShamatM
Cape Verde Islands
| Player | Pos | Min | Rating | G | A | Shots | SoT | Key Passes | Dribbles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vozinha | G | 90 | 7.5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Deroy Duarte | M | 90 | 7.5 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | — |
| João Paulo | D | 90 | 7.3 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 1/3 |
| Kevin Lenini | M | 90 | 7.3 | — | — | 2 | — | — | 1/1 |
| Diney Borges | D | 90 | 7.3 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ryan Mendes(C) | M | 71 | 7.2 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 2/4 |
| Pico | D | 90 | 7.2 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — |
| Wagner Pina | D | 89 | 6.9 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1/2 |
| Willy Semedo | M | 61 | 6.7 | — | — | 2 | — | 1 | 2/6 |
| Dailon Rocha Livramento | F | 61 | 6.2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jamiro Monteiro | M | 71 | 6.0 | — | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0/2 |
| Substitutes | |||||||||
| Stopira | D | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Márcio Rosa | G | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Steven Moreira | D | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jovane Cabral | F | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Logan Costa | D | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Kelvin Pires | D | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| CJ Dos Santos | G | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Yannick Semedo | M | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gilson Tavares | F | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nuno Da Costa | F | 29 | 7.2 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | 1/2 |
| Laros Duarte | M | 19 | 7.0 | — | — | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1/1 |
| Garry Rodrigues | F | 19 | 6.6 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0/1 |
| Hélio Varela | F | 29 | 6.3 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1/2 |
Saudi Arabia
| Player | Pos | Min | Rating | G | A | Shots | SoT | Key Passes | Dribbles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abdulelah Al-Amri | D | 90 | 7.9 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | — |
| Mohammed Al-Owais | G | 90 | 7.5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mohamed Kanno | F | 90 | 7.2 | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | 1/1 |
| Saud Abdulhamid | D | 90 | 7.2 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1/1 |
| Sultan Mandash | M | 66 | 7.2 | — | — | — | — | — | 0/2 |
| Nasser Al-Dawsari | M | 90 | 6.9 | — | — | — | — | — | 2/2 |
| Hassan Tambakti | D | 33 | 6.9 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Abdullah Al-Khaibari | M | 45 | 6.9 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nawaf Boushal | D | 82 | 6.7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Salem Al-Dawsari(C) | M | 66 | 6.3 | — | — | — | — | — | 2/4 |
| Firas Al-Buraikan | F | 90 | 6.0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0/1 |
| Substitutes | |||||||||
| Khalid Al-Ghannam | F | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ayman Yahya | M | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nawaf Al-Aqidi | G | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ziyad Aljohani | M | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jehad Thakri | D | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hassan Kadesh | D | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ala'a Al-Hejji | M | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ali Majrashi | D | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ahmed Al-Kassar | G | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Saleh Al-Shehri | F | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ali Lajami | D | 57 | 7.7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Moteb Al-Harbi | D | 8 | 6.7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mohammed Abu Al-Shamat | M | 24 | 6.6 | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | 0/1 |
| Musab Al Juwayr | M | 45 | 6.6 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — |
| Abdullah Al-Hamdan | F | 24 | 6.2 | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | 0/1 |