Tunisia suffered an unexpected poor performance this Tuesday, losing against Namibia (0-1).
After Ghana, it was Tunisia’s turn to be trapped entering the African Cup. The Carthage Eagles were beaten by Namibia (0-1) by conceding a goal at the very end of the match. Deon Hotto crucified them with a diving header in the 90th. A start to the tournament far from ideal, especially since the next opponents (Mali and South Africa) will be of a completely different caliber.
Msakni, the only one to survive
The Tunisians stalled and their 1e period was even close to nothing. No opportunity created and no alert worthy of the name in the opposite camp. It was even the Namibians who were the most dangerous, with two attempts scored at the start of the game.
Returning from the locker room, things were slightly better on the Tunisian side. They suddenly woke up. And it was the tireless Youssouf Msakni who showed the way forward. The one who disputed his 8e edition of the CAN almost became the hero of the match in the 80se. He placed a magnificent header, which forced the opposing goalkeeper to make a huge save.
Tunisia with its back to the wall
Before this highlight, the returning Haythem Jouini missed two goal balls, missing in the final gesture. And Anis Ben Slimani wasted an offering from Msakni, because of a loose volley. Paradoxically, at the very moment when we saw Tunisia force the decision at the wire, it was Namibia who scored and snatched the 3 points at stake. And no one can say that it was undeserved.
Nothing is lost for Tunisia as this is only the first match of the competition. But the selection of Jalel Kadri will have to show something else during their next meetings to hope to pass. As a reminder, in 2022, the Carthage Eagles also started with a defeat (against Mali) before relaunching and reaching the quarter-finals of the event.
