However, Morocco was the only Arab nation to pass the group stage, even with two shock victories after exiting Saudi Arabia and Tunisia.
Saudi blow
The exception was Qatar, who became the second host nation after South Africa in 2010 to be eliminated in the first round.
Saudi Arabia pulled off one of the biggest surprises ever in World Cup history when they came from behind to win 2–1 against Argentina, who had taken the lead through Messi’s penalty.
As far as Tunisia, they beat France, although the Europeans’ lineup was reshuffled, with Mbappe only coming on as a substitute.
“The victory of the Tunisian national team over France will go down in the history books,” said 41-year-old Khalil Belhaj, a Tunisian fan.
“However, Tunisia’s victory over France remains a moral victory against a team that qualified and played with a reserve team.”
Before the final of the Qatar tournament, Arab teams had won 10 out of 73 matches through eight different teams, while this time they again achieved half the number: five wins in 16 matches.
The Arabs achieved their previous best result when Tunisia beat Mexico 3–1 in 1978, Algeria beat West Germany 2–1 in 1982, Morocco beat Portugal 3–1 in 1986, and Saudi Arabia Defeated Belgium 1-0 in 1994.
Along with Morocco, Arab teams were lavishly supported in the first World Cup in the Middle East.
