Miercoles 30 de Noviembre del 2022
Tunisia was eliminated. The Africans finished two points behind Australia, who did advance to the next stage of the World Cup.
A France full of substitutes lost 1-0 against Tunisia, a defeat that does not prevent the 'Bleus', the reigning world champions, from reaching first place in Group D, in which Australia also qualified for the round of 16 after a 1-0 victory over Denmark.
Tunisia says goodbye to the World Cup with a prestigious victory, thanks to a solitary goal from captain Wahbi Khazri (58), and 4 points. Meanwhile, France and Australia, tied on 6 points but with a better goal difference for the French (+3 compared to -1), are already waiting for their opponents in the round of 16.
Denmark, one of the disappointments of the World Cup, says goodbye with only one point.
France was already qualified and, barring a catastrophe, had secured first place. Therefore, the coach of the 'Bleus', Didier Deschamps, decided to rest nine of his usual starting eleven, including his two stars Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann, and his top scorer Olivier Giroud.
Mbappe and Griezmann on the bench
The North African team, which needed to win to advance in the tournament, started the match pressing the 'Bleus' and took the lead with a goal from Nader Ghandri, but it was disallowed by VAR for offside of a teammate (8).
The Tunisian team barely allowed the French to maneuver, and it was not until the 25th minute that they found a way to reach the opposing goal with danger. It came with a counterattack that ended with a through pass from Youssouf Fofana to Kingsley Coman, but the Bayern Munich winger missed the target, which was the only shot on goal by the French in the entire first half.
With the presence in the stadium of tennis player Ons Jabeur, the most internationally renowned Tunisian athlete, and with the majority of the crowd supporting the North Africans, Tunisia continued to push forward, and veteran Steve Mandanda saved what could have been the first goal of the match. First from a shot by Anis Ben Slimane (32) and shortly after from Wahbi Khazri (36).
After the break, the situation remained the same: France tried to defend with the ball and Tunisia sought the goal, which could have come with a high shot from Laidouni (52).
Khazri's goal
The reward for the North Africans came after a recovered ball from Fofana in midfield, which Khazri converted into 1-0 after beating two defenders and scoring low against Mandanda (58).
The joy was short-lived for the Tunisians, as a few kilometers from the Education City Stadium, in the Al Janoub State, Australia scored shortly after against Denmark and regained second place in the group.
Deschamps also stopped experimenting and went for the game by bringing in regular starters such as Mbappe, Griezmann, Rabiot, and Dembele. French dominance intensified, and the Tunisians retreated to defend their lead.
The last minutes were a French siege, but neither Dembele (81), Rabiot (85), Mbappe (89), nor Kolo Muani (89) managed to find the net defended by Aymen Dahmen.
Griezmann (90+8) did score in stoppage time, but the goal was disallowed for an offside by the Atletico Madrid forward at the start of the play.
At that moment, the Tunisians were more focused on the television, waiting for a miracle... which did not happen. AFP