The-Shot.Net Writers Club - Tunisia

Jan 28 1515 GMT Tunisia - Congo DR 3:0 (final score)

Before the match:
- If Tunisia beat Congo DR Tunisia will be already in the quarter finals.
- If Congo DR lose to Tunisia, Congo DR will be eliminated.
- If this ends in a draw, Tunisia and Guinea will be in the comfortable position that a draw will suit both in their final encounter

1st half:
-a nervous beginning without fluent play
-('7) a flying save by the Congolese keeper against a Ghodhbane header after a free kick cross
-('9)('11) Congolese Mbayo for a rough tackle and Tunisian Ghodhbane for ? see yellow
-('12) A Tunisian gets stretchered off after hectic grows
-('17) Tunisia: Santos, who has not been in the starting line up, comes in for Jedidi
-still a nervous match without much fluent play
-('22) Congo DR: Lualua provokes a corner, it flies in and an unchallenged header goes far wide
-('23) now the Congolese keeper seeks injury treatment, apparently a muscle problem after a goal kick
-Congo DR achieve to shut down spaces in midfield and obstruct the Tunisians game
-('30) But this means they attack themselves only with few players. One goal scene is when the Tunisian keeper and a defender can stop Lualua only in the last second
-('32) Congo DR: This time the blue and yellow attack with four and are immediately dangerous
-('35) Congo DR: A dangerous counter attack, the Congolese striker Lua Lua is much quicker than the Tunisian defenders, but he is all alone, so his cross rolls across the penalty in fron of an empty goal without effect
-('36) Tunisia: half chance after a header
-('38) an off ball incident might change the course of the match entirely: A harmless but stupid little kick by Lualua, probably provoked, against his opponent. The Tunisian thinks for a while and then starts embarissing theatralics. The referee apparently has seen the kick and shows the red card to the Congolese captain. He has to be hold by several coaches as he bursts out in anger over the substitution.
-Emotions are high now. Tunisia seem to have gained confidence. That the rules often punish the players who react or protect themselves and rewards the ones who provoke is not the mistake of the referee. Though, a yellow card might have been enough here.
And Lualua should have known this is a away game.
-('45) 5 minutes injury time
-('45 1) Congo DR make what seems a tactical substitution

halftime 0:0
Congo DR with control over the Tunisian attacking attempts though the North Africans with more ball possession. But concentrated running and good organisation shut down the spaces and frustrated the hosts.
In attack Lualua meant a constrant thread by his speed though normally outnumbered.
But the whole match might have changed through the red card against the Congolese captain.

2nd half:
-the stadium is not even half filled
-DR Congo still look good, Mbayo tries to play the role of Lualua
-emotions seem have calmed
-('51) Tunisia: #12 Mnari with a great curled long range effort, misses the triangle by a meter
-Congo DR start to make the old 10 men mistake: They draw back too far and the match is played entirely in their half. They get punished immediately:
-('56) A cross from the right finds Santos who fires it directly into the net with a precise low shot from 10 meters - 1:0
-momentum is on the Tunisian's side now, Congo seem demoralised by the double blow...
-... but seem to recover and start attacking
-('61) bad marking sees 2 Congolese go unchallenged for a header, a good opportunity, but wide
-('65) Trabelsi cross from the right, Santos tries to volley, it goes direction corner flag and so turns to a cross for Braham who heads it into the far corner of the goal - 2:0
-('71) Tunisian keeper Boumnijel with problems and an opportunity for the Congolese
-('73) Tunisia more confident but still their game does not look well coordinated. A promising attack gets stopped because two attackers are on the same spot, receiving but not taking a pass
-('75) Tunisia: Another huge opportunity as the Congolese defence seems to fall apart now and the Tunisians start to combine on an emotional high. The Congolese keeper with a fine save
-After the first match the Congolese had admitted to have been tired early, maybe this is a factor here now
-('80) Tunisia: the Congolese with a fine save again, against a 16 meter Braham strike
-('87) Tunisia: Ghodhbane through ball on Santos, who scores through the legs of the keeper - 3:0
-the Congolese have never given up in attack, but have had only half chances and in the 4th minute of injury time a correctly disallowed goal

final score 3:0
In retrospective view the match was decided with the suspension for Lualua. As the Congolese started to reflect their situation they started to draw back too far and so the wallbreaking goal became more and more likely. It came so early that the Tunisians had time to add two more against a now demoralised defence.
This last 30 minutes repaired some of the the image the Tunisians had created before by a helpless display.
Consequence:
Tunisia are qualified for the quarter finals, DR Congo are out.