Sweden 5-1 Tunisia: Graham Potter’s men make five-star statement in Group F opener
Yasin Ayari scored twice alongside strikes from Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres as a rampant Sweden dismantled Tunisia 5-1 at Monterrey Stadium
Sweden announced their return to the grandest stage in spectacular style, dismantling a shell-shocked Tunisia in Monterrey to lay down an emphatic marker in World Cup Group F.
Graham Potter’s side, missing from the global showpiece four years ago, simply had too much attacking nuance and physical dynamism for an African side that arrived with a reputation for stubborn defensive resolve. Instead, the Eagles of Carthage were torn to shreds on a humid night in Mexico.
Brighton midfielder Yasin Ayari was the architect of the downfall, firing home two spectacular strikes from distance. His first arrived after just seven minutes, capitalizing on an uncharacteristic mix-up in the Tunisian backline to loop a brilliant effort into an unguarded net. Ayari, whose father was born in Tunisia, pointedly refused to celebrate out of respect, despite writing himself into folklore as his country’s youngest World Cup goalscorer since Tomas Brolin in 1990.
The Scandinavian onslaught continued, led by the lethal partnership of Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres. On the half-hour mark, the duo combined beautifully on a blistering counterattack. Gyokeres turned provider, feeding a perfectly weighted ball to Isak, who cut inside on the left flank before drilling a low finish past Mouhib Chamakh.
Tunisia, who historically went through their entire qualifying campaign without conceding a single goal, looked entirely devoid of answers, yet they clawed their way back into the contest just before the interval. Hannibal Mejbri’s floating, teasing free-kick picked out defender Omar Rekik, who escaped his marker to thud a header past Kristoffer Nordfeldt.
For a brief period after the restart, Sabri Lamouchi’s side harbored hopes of an unlikely comeback, but Sweden swiftly extinguished any romantic notions of a revival. In the 59th minute, Ellyes Skhiri was ruthlessly caught in possession on the edge of his own penalty area by Isak. The forward rolled a precise pass into the path of Gyokeres, who rifled home to continue a remarkable international run that has now yielded 15 goals in his last 16 appearances.
Potter turned to his bench to apply the late gloss, and substitute Mattias Svanberg made an instant impact. Just moments after stepping onto the pitch, he slotting home a composed fourth after a lengthy VAR review deemed him marginally onside.
Deep into stoppage time, the final word predictably belonged to the irrepressible Ayari. Picking up the ball 25 yards out, he unleashed another venomous long-range drive that flew past a despairing Chamakh to round off a five-star performance.
With the Netherlands and Japan earlier sharing the points in a thrilling 2-2 draw, Sweden sit proudly alone at the summit of Group F, their credentials as genuine tournament dark horses firmly established.
