S. Arabia hold Aus 0-0 in WC qualifier

Herve Renard marked his return to the Saudi Arabia dugout with a gritty 0-0 draw against hosts Australia as the Green Falcons fumed at a late disallowed goal that cost them maximum points in a crunch World Cup qualifier on Thursday.

Both sides had chances in front of 27,000 fans at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium but Renard's players were furious after Sultan Al-Ghannam's late strike was ruled offside although it was confirmed by VAR after a long break in play.

At the halfway mark of the third phase of Asian qualifying, the result left Australia second in Group C on six points, four behind Japan, who play Indonesia in Jakarta on Friday.

Saudi Arabia remain third, also on six points, but Bahrain, who have five, could leapfrog them and the Australians with a home win against China later on Thursday. The top two teams at the end of the phase qualify directly for the 2026 finals in North America, with the third and fourth-placed teams advancing to another round of qualifiers.

Having replaced Roberto Mancini after the Saudis managed one point from their two home matches in the previous qualifying window, Renard started his second stint in charge on a positive note in Melbourne.

The Frenchman was also in charge during qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when the Saudis held Australia 0-0 in Sydney three years ago and then beat them 1-0 at home, sending the Socceroos down the perilous playoffs route to qualify.

"It was for us a difficult game but congratulations to everybody (on the team)," said Renard. "We managed to get one point. We are in the middle of this group. Everything is still open."

Saudi Arabia head to Jakarta next week to play Indonesia in their next qualifier, with Australia travelling to Bahrain.

Thursday's game of high stakes was a scrappy, frenetic affair laden with missed chances. The opening half finished with a flurry of shots but Australia failed to capitalise on defensive errors. Australia playmaker Ajdin Hrustic's low shot was denied by goalkeeper Ahmed Al-Kassar before captain Jackson Irvine blazed over from long-range six minutes into injury time.

In between, home keeper Joe Gauci foiled Firas Al-Buraikan with a heroic dive at the forward's feet as he bore down on goal after breaching Australia's offside trap.

Australia coach Tony Popovic was happier with the second half despite more disappointment but ultimately relief.

Substitute forward Brandon Borrello had just the keeper to beat late on but laid off a poor cross to Riley McGree.

Australian hearts were in mouths when a Saudi free kick was headed out of the box, allowing Al-Ghannam to fire inside the left corner but to the home side's relief VAR confirmed a stray Saudi foot was offside by inches in the goalmouth. "We have to give confidence to the referee," Renard told reporters. "I have to see it once again to be sure that they made the best decision. So I will not comment about this."

Deep into stoppage time, McGree all but snatched the win for Australia when he sent a bicycle kick just wide. "In the second half I thought we really improved and took control of the game," Popovic told reporters. "Overall it's an OK result in terms of where we want to be ... We can still get that automatic spot (to 2026)."