Tuesday’s World Cup opener saw Tunisia hold Denmark to a scoreless draw, giving them a strong start in Group D against one of the tournament’s underdogs.
In five previous attempts, Tunisia has never advanced past the group stage of a World Cup, but Jalal Kadri’s team will be inspired by their performance against the highly anticipated Danes and by earning a point at Education City Stadium.
Feisty Tunisia hold Eriksen’s Denmark at World Cup
Tunisia has only lost to Brazil and frustrated Denmark in front of tens of thousands of raucous North Africans since Kadri took over as coach in January.
After nearly passing out on the field at the European Championship last year due to wilting in the face of fierce defending, Christian Eriksen was mostly unnoticed in his return to major tournament football.
The underdogs going into the game were Denmark, but Tunisia tore into their more prestigious opponents right off the bat, rushing into tackles.
The stadium was electrified by the massed columns of Tunisians, who applauded each clearance and tackle.
The stadium was electrified by the massed columns of Tunisians, who applauded each clearance and tackle.
In the eleventh minute, Mohamed Drager’s long-range attempt that clipped off Andreas Christensen narrowly missed giving the African team the lead.
The Danes started to take control of the game, but their talisman Eriksen found it difficult to elude Tunisia’s well-organized backline. As a result, despite getting into dangerous situations, any attacks were easily thwarted.
Anis Ben Slimane, a Copenhagen native, strayed offside before slipping the ball past Kasper Schmeichel, who then made a fantastic save to ensure the scores were tied at halftime. The Tunisians came the closest to seizing the lead in the opening session.
Issam Jebali was able to gain access to Youssef Msakni’s deft pass, but Schmeichel superbly deflected his dinked attempt away from goal.
Although Tunisia continued to play hard, Denmark had the two best opportunities in a close second half.
In the 69th minute, Aymen Dahmen’s fingertip stop denied Eriksen what would have been a great goal, and from the ensuing corner, replacement Andreas Cornelius somehow managed to head onto the post from close range.
Due to Tunisia’s inability to match Denmark’s muscular efforts with meaningful innovation, Denmark would have likely won the match as a result.
With their fervent followers, they celebrated a priceless and unexpected point after escaping a late penalty scare.
source:nsemwokrom.com
