Tunisia fell in its first test of the 2026 World Cup, after losing 5-1 to Sweden, during the match that brought the two teams together for Group F of the World Cup, which is taking place in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The match, which was held at the BBVA Stadium in Mexico, saw Tunisia put on a disappointing performance for the fans in its No. 7 appearance in the World Finals, but the Carthage Eagles failed to come out with a satisfactory result, which will make it difficult for them to position early in the group, which also includes the Netherlands and Japan.
The Swedish national team succeeded in scoring the first goal early, specifically at the 7th minute, through Yassine Ayari, who is of Tunisian origin, who invested several wasted balls in front of the Tunisian goal, before shooting a powerful ball from outside the box that found the net.
In the 30th minute, Alexander Isak was able to consolidate the lead for the Swedish team, after a counter-attack during which he advanced from the left side, before reaching the edge of the box, and dribbled off one of the defenders, shooting an easy ball that goalkeeper Abdelmohaib Al-Shamikh failed to deal with, to settle the net amid great disappointment that dominated the Tunisian fans.
In the 43rd minute, Omar Raguiq restored hope for the Tunisian national team, by scoring a goal to reduce the difference, after receiving an aerial cross from Hannibal Mejbri inside the box, which he turned with his head in a wonderful way into the net, which is Tunisia's 15th goal in the history of its participation in the World Cup, and the 3rd goal scored by the head of the Carthage Eagles in the World Cup.
In the 60th minute, Victor Giukiris strengthened the Swedish team's lead in the match, scoring the third goal after a serious mistake by Elias Al-Sakhiri, which ended with the Arsenal striker in front of the Tunisian goal, without finding it difficult to put the ball in the net.
In the 86th minute, Sweden scored again, scoring the fourth goal through Matthias Svanberg, who took advantage of a cross inside the box, which he shot hard into the net, a goal that needed a special intervention from the "VAR" technique to confirm its legitimacy, amid the objection of the Tunisian players.
While the match was taking its last breath, Yassine Ayari returned to score the fifth goal from a powerful shot in the 90+6th minute, which found the net amid a great shock that dominated the fans.
Tunisian possession and Swedish victory
The statistics of the match revealed that Tunisia had a relative superiority over Sweden, as the "Carthage Eagles" dominated the game, possessing the ball by 51% compared to 49% for the Swedish team.
Sweden were the most threatening on goal, squandering two big missed opportunities, and shooting 13 balls towards the Tunisian goal, 7 of which came inside the goal frame, with 7 corners and 79% passing accuracy.
For its part, the Tunisian national team was content with its only goal without wasting other chances to score during the match, with the Swedes shooting on 6 occasions, only two of which came towards the goal.
Sweden's striker Victor Giukiris was deservedly named Man of the Match after scoring a goal and assisting another during the match, earning an average rating of 8.5 points, after playing 90 minutes of play, with two shots on goal, and an accuracy of 86% of passes.
World Cup 2026 Schedule
This edition is exceptional at various levels, both in terms of the number of participating teams and the new tournament system, as the competitions will be held over a full 40 days, with 104 matches played.
The 48 teams were divided into 12 groups, each group includes four teams, with the first and second place holders from each group qualifying directly to the round of 32, in addition to the best 8 teams occupying the third place, according to the number of points, then the difference of goals and goals scored.
After the end of the group stage, the knockout rounds will begin on June 28, with the participation of 32 teams for the first time, where the knockout matches will start from the round of 32, then the round of 16, followed by the quarter-finals and semi-finals, and up to the expected final.
The final is scheduled to take place on July 19, 2026 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, one of the largest stadiums hosting the tournament.
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