Saudi Arabia team denies rumors of Rolls-Royce Phantom for upsetting Argentina

A rumour spread on social media said that Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman would give each player on the Saudi Arabia soccer team a Rolls-Royce Phantom as a reward for beating Argentina in the FIFA World Cup. Striker Saleh Alshehri and head coach Hervé Renard, however, have both denied the rumour.

During a media conference, Alshehri was asked by a reporter about the Roll-Royce that he was allegedly getting and what color he was choosing. It wouldn't be a small gift: A Phantom model starts at close to $460,000.

The player said the rumors were not true, and the reporter followed up with "it's a shame, right?"

However, Alshehri was not in a joking mood.

"We are here to serve our country and do the best," he said. "So that's our biggest achievement."

Renard also provided an answer; he stressed the importance of making it known that his group is not taking their opponents lightly and that they intend to keep fighting for victories.

"We have a very serious federation. We have a very serious ministry of sport. It is not time to get something at this moment. We only won a game," the coach said.

"We still have to get very important games, and we are hoping some more. There is nothing true about this comment. We've only played one game at the moment."

Saudi Arabia caused an upset by beating Argentina 2-1 on November 22 thanks goals by Alshehri and Salem Aldawsari in the second half. Argentina held possession of the ball for 70 percent of the match and entered halftime with a 1-0 lead, but that wasn't enough to hold off Saudi Arabia's comeback efforts as it became the first team in Group C to get a win. 

They play Poland on Saturday hoping for something that will cement their position in the group in pursuit of a place in the last 16.