Qatar’s Boualem Khoukhi stunned Switzerland with a late equaliser as the sides played out a 1-1 draw in their opening match at the World Cup on Saturday.
A Breel Embolo penalty had broken the deadlock for Switzerland early in the first half in the San Francisco Bay Area, before the wasteful favourites were made to pay as Qatar earned their first ever point at a World Cup.
Qatar, appearing in just their second finals after hosting the 2022 World Cup, looked rusty after the war in the Middle East caused the cancellation of two of their warm-up friendlies, meaning their meeting with Switzerland was just their third match since December last year.
And for the majority of the match they were outclassed as Switzerland racked up 26 shots, before 35-year-old Khoukhi’s header four minutes into injury time sparked wild celebrations on the Qatar bench.
For their boss Julen Lopetegui, it was also a landmark moment as he coached his first World Cup match.
