1-5 Debacle Has Consequences

Coach apparently has to pack his bags after World Cup defeat

Sabri Lamouchi has to pack his bags.(Bild: AFP/JULIO CESAR AGUILAR)

Tunisia fired head coach Sabri Lamouchi shortly after the team’s disastrous opening match at the World Cup. The federation’s leadership made the decision on Monday in response to the North Africans’ 1-5 loss to Sweden in their first tournament match the day before. “It has been officially agreed to dismiss coach Sabri Lamouchi,” the Tunisian Football Federation wrote on Instagram. Mondher Kebaier will take over on an interim basis for the group stage matches against Japan and the Netherlands.

The 56-year-old previously coached the Tunisian national team from 2019 to 2022. As the federation’s technical director, Kebaier had already traveled with the team to the World Cup. At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the Tunisians had defeated eventual finalist France in the group stage. Four years later, however, the opener against Sweden turned into a debacle for the team. “This is a painful defeat. It hurts. It’s hard to start the tournament with such a bitter defeat,” Lamouchi said afterward.

At that point, the 54-year-old Frenchman had no idea that he was giving his final press conference as Tunisia’s national team coach.

Tunisia suffered a 1-5 defeat.(Bild: AP/Dolores Ochoa)

Short tenure for Lamouchi
Lamouchi had only taken over the role five months earlier in January. In the five international matches of his brief tenure, there was just one victory against World Cup underdog Haiti (1-0). In a friendly against the Austrian national team two weeks ago in Vienna, they lost 0-1 despite having a man advantage for much of the match. Even before the World Cup began, Tunisian media described the team as difficult to manage, with experienced and newly recruited players struggling to gel. Last winter’s Africa Cup of Nations also ended with a disappointing exit in the round of 16 against Mali.

Lamouchi is the third head coach to be fired during a World Cup...

• In 1998, Tunisia fired Henryk Kasperczak after two losses (0-2 to England; 0-1 to Colombia). In the final match, under Ali Selmi, they drew 1-1 against Romania, which had already advanced.

• Also in 1998, South Korea fired Bum-kun Cha after a 1-3 loss to Mexico and a 0-5 defeat to the Netherlands. Under assistant coach Kim Pyung-seok, they drew 1-1 with Belgium in their final match.

• The craziest story unfolded in 2018 just before the World Cup began. Two days before their first match, Spain fired Julen Lopetegui after it became known that he would be stepping down after the World Cup and had already signed with Real Madrid. Fernando Hierro took over a visibly unsettled Spanish team, which was eliminated in the round of 16.

Julen Lopetegui was fired in 2018 after his plans to move to Real Madrid came to light.(Bild: EPA/RODRIGO JIMENEZ)

Tunisia’s players can now also welcome a new coach to the locker room.