Saudi national team down visiting Reggae Boyz 3-0 in Riyadh friendly LONDON: Saudi Arabia returned to international football action in style on Saturday evening in Riyadh with a 3-0 win over Jamaica in their first game of 2020. First-half goals from Salem Al-Dawsari and Saleh Al-Shehri put the Green Falcons in control, with substitute Firas Albirakan adding a third before the end to secure a comfortable, encouraging and deserved victory. It was a measured performance from the clinical hosts, ranked 67 in the world, against the visitors placed 19 spots higher, in an empty Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium. While it was understandable that there was some rustiness in the home team, with coronavirus causing all official games to be postponed, coach Herve Renard will have been delighted with the energy, work-rate and commitment that his players showed in a game that, at times, did not feel like a friendly. Some of the thunderous challenges on display, especially a first-half two-footed tackle from Mohammed Al-Khabrani, could have resulted in a red card in a competitive match. The home team started brightly and were ahead after just 10 minutes. Al-Dawsari saw his spot-kick, awarded after Kemar Lawrence handled in the area, well-saved by Dwayne Miller, but the Saudi star was on hand to fire in the rebound from close range. The Reggae Boyz came within a whisker of leveling just before the half-hour. A low ball from the right fizzed across the Saudi area with Norman Campbell getting a touch from close range, but Mohammed Al-Yami reacted quickly to palm the ball away from danger. It was the closest Jamaica came to a goal. On the stroke of half-time, it was 2-0. Lawrence was robbed of possession just outside his own area by the ever alert Ayman Yahya. A simple but effective pass found Al-Shehri just inside the area and the forward made no mistake, tucking the ball in the bottom corner. Saudi Arabia were looking increasingly fluent going forward, and at the start of the second-half a slick build-up resulted in a corner that saw Ahmed Sharahili’s header comfortably saved by Miller. The pressure kept coming from the home team, but they were struggling to create clear enough chances to put the game to bed. That all changed 14 minutes from the end when another slick attack ended in the third goal. The impressive Al-Dawsari won possession in the center-circle and advanced to the edge of the Jamaican area where the former Villarreal slipped the ball to Abdullah Alhamddan who, in turn, squared it to Albirakan to side-foot into the net from close range. The bonus of a clean sheet rarely looked in danger as the home team remained solid at the back, denying Jamaica time and space as well as a clear sight of goal. Jamaica will get a quick chance of revenge as the two teams meet again on Tuesday at the same venue, but for Saudi Arabia, there is plenty to build on.