Tunisia’s new coach faces baptism of fire against ‘best team in Asia’
Soccer Football – FIFA World Cup 2026 – Tunisia Press Conference – Monterrey, Mexico – June 16, 2026 Tunisia coach Herve Renard during the press conference REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
MONTERREY, Mexico, June 18 : Tunisia will throw new coach Herve Renard straight into the deep end when they face Japan on Saturday in Monterrey, with the North Africans desperately needing points after their tournament got off to a nightmare start.
The French coach has barely had time to settle into his new role after being rushed in to replace the sacked Sabri Lamouchi, who paid the price for Tunisia’s crushing 5-1 opening defeat to Sweden.
Now Renard must somehow galvanise his shell-shocked squad against opponents he readily admits will be no pushovers.
“I know very well the quality of this team,” he said. “Japan are the best team in Asia.”
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
The four-time Asian champions lived up to that billing in their tournament opener, showing resilience to fight back twice and snatch a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands on Sunday in Dallas.
Daichi Kamada’s dramatic 88th-minute equaliser underscored a never-say-die attitude that could spell trouble for a fragile Tunisian defence.
Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu was full of praise for his team’s grit and determination in battling back.
“We were trailing behind a very difficult opponent (and) the players were united as one, tenacious, they fought to the end and did not cease to persevere,” Moriyasu said.
Yet Moriyasu will be hoping to show more than just fighting spirit on Saturday and made it clear his team had been hoping for a win against the Netherlands.
“We were aiming to get three points, not one point. So in that point of view, of course it was a little bit disappointing.”
With Sweden leading Group F on three points and both Japan and the Netherlands sitting on one point each, bottom-placed Tunisia know Saturday’s clash could make or break their campaign.
Source: Reuters
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
