https://arab.news/n4fdg
RIYADH: “My son wanted to play for Tunisia, but I asked him to represent Sweden instead, as it is the country that welcomed and developed him,” said Yasin Ayari’s father, Azzouz, in May in an interview with Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.
“It was his duty to give something back.”
And give back he did.
Ayari took just seven minutes to open his World Cup account with Sweden, picking the ball up outside the area before unleashing a belter into the far corner.
Yet despite the stunning effort, Ayari held his hands aloft, refusing to celebrate despite the swarm of yellow and blue that engulfed him. The young midfielder had just scored against the very team that had courted him for years.
It was a dagger in the hearts of Tunisian fans. The Eagles of Carthage are Africa’s joint second-most represented nation in World Cup history, but unlike Cameroon with eight appearances and Morocco with seven, they have never progressed beyond the group stage.
Missing out on talented dual-nationality players like Ayari is exactly the type of setback that has hampered their pursuit of that breakthrough. Hatem Ben Arfa was among those courted by Tunisia before opting for France, while World Cup winner Sami Khedira was also eligible for the Eagles of Carthage but chose Germany early on.
Tunisia did have one dual-nationality player in midfield who chose a different path. Rani Khedira, brother of Sami, lined up in the heart of midfield for the Eagles of Carthage for his World Cup debut.
Khedira partnered with Ellyes Skhiri and Hannibal Mejbri in midfield, forming a central trio ahead of Tunisia’s back five and behind Elias Saad and Anis Slimane. The starting lineup left Tunisians scrambling to work out exactly what formation coach Sabri Lamouchi intended to deploy, but it did little to inspire confidence.
Alexander Isak added to those concerns in the 30th minute when he turned Montassar Talbi inside out before firing past Mouhib Chamakh for Sweden’s second.
It was another classic Swedish counter-attack, one that benefited from Viktor Gyokeres’ hold-up play in the buildup.
Chamakh endured a first half to forget, having already slipped in the buildup to Ayari’s goal before failing to palm away Isak’s effort.
Tunisia showed some fight after falling 2-0 behind, despite only threatening from long. It was Mejbri’s creativity that eventually brought them back into the contest.
His cross from the right flank found Omar Rekik, who headed home to the delight of the travelling Tunisian support.
That momentum, however, quickly evaporated at the hour mark.
After entering the second half on the front foot, Tunisia were caught playing out of the back when Skhiri received the ball from Chamakh with Gyokeres and Isak closing him down.
Skhiri made the costly mistake of attempting to dribble past Isak, who robbed him of possession before laying the ball off to Gyokeres for a simple finish.
A triple substitution followed and Mejbri dropped deeper to assist in the buildup as Skhiri was withdrawn by Lamouchi. Substitute Sebastian Tounekti attempt to inject some energy down the left flank, but by that stage, Sweden had become increasingly difficult to break down.
The Swedes put the game beyond doubt in the 86th minute when substitute Mattias Svanberg turned home a free-kick delivery just 18 seconds after entering the fray.
Svanberg appeared to be in an offside position when the set piece was taken, but a VAR review spotted a touch from Isak that reset the phase of play. By then, the substitute had returned to an onside position, allowing Sweden’s fourth goal to stand.
The night ended just as it had begun, with Ayari further breaking Tunisian hearts. The midfielder once again picked up the ball outside the area before unleashing another strike into the far corner in the closing moments, sealing a 5-1 victory for Sweden and completing his brace.
The defeat leaves Tunisia bottom of Group E after the opening round of fixtures, while Sweden boosted their hopes of reaching the Round of 32 following the earlier 2-2 draw between the Netherlands and Japan.
Group E resumes on June 20, when the Netherlands face Sweden at 8 p.m. Saudi Arabia time, before Tunisia take on Japan at 7 a.m. on June 21.