Tunisia’s hopes of reaching the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations have been thrown into serious doubt after they suffered a historic 2-0 home defeat by Libya, with head coach Moein Chaabani blaming the wider mentality surrounding the national team.
Libya secured their first victory over Tunisia on Tunisian soil in Friday’s Group H qualifier at the Taib Mhiri Stadium in Sfax. The result leaves Tunisia bottom of the section with two points from three matches, after two draws and a defeat.
Libya moved to four points and currently lead the group, although their position depends on the result of the meeting between Uganda and Botswana.
The two sides will meet again in Libya on 17 November, when Tunisia will be under pressure to respond and revive their qualification campaign. Libya, meanwhile, will attempt to build on a landmark result and strengthen their position in the race for a place at the finals.
Chaabani: ‘The problem is mentality’
Chaabani expressed his frustration during the post-match news conference, saying the difficulties facing Tunisian football go beyond the players available or the identity of the coach.
“When you go out and see how things operate in other countries, you realise that mentality is the most important thing in football,” he said.
“The current problem is a mentality issue. This team would not succeed even if you brought in Guardiola under the current circumstances and with the current mentality.”
The defeat was particularly damaging because it came at home, in front of Tunisia’s supporters, and against neighbours Libya, who had never previously beaten them away from home.
Chaabani’s comments suggested that appointing a high-profile manager alone would not solve the national team’s problems. In his assessment, fundamental changes to the mentality and conditions around the side are required alongside any technical or tactical adjustments.
Historic setback for Tunisia
The 2-0 loss was Tunisia’s heaviest home defeat by goal difference in the history of their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign. It was also the first time they had fallen two goals behind in a home qualifier.
The result ended more than 25 years of resistance to a defeat by a two-goal margin in the continental qualification competition. Tunisia’s previous loss by that scoreline came on 24 March 2001, when they were beaten 2-0 by Morocco in Rabat.
They have also made the worst start in their qualifying history, failing to win any of their opening three matches for the first time. Their record stands at two draws and one defeat, meaning they have collected only two of a possible nine points.
Tunisia have appeared at every Africa Cup of Nations finals since the 1994 edition, which they hosted and where they lost the final to Nigeria. That run amounts to 17 consecutive tournaments, while they have made 22 finals appearances overall and won the title once, as hosts in 2004.
Libya’s best achievement remains reaching the 1982 final, where they lost to Ghana on penalties.
