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Class dismissed
Tunisia leaves France with one point and a lesson
Posted: Saturday June 27, 1998 07:42 PM
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Grad school: Sami Trabelsi (right) and the rest of the Tunisian squad learned from the best in the world (AP) |
PARIS, France (AP) --
They came, they played, but they didn't come close to conquering.
Tunisia's World
Cup soccer team won't be returning home to a hero's welcome. But after the
team's 1-1 draw with Group G winners Romania, they
won't have to face the humiliation of a scoreless World Cup either.
"I only hope that the Tunisian people forgive us for the slow start and
... that they can be proud of the way we finished the match," striker Adel
Sellmi told The Associated Press.
A 20-year absence from the World Cup left Tunisia in the unenviable
position of being the underdog in a group that included such powers as England,
Romania and Colombia.
And, by the team's own admission, there was no serious hope of
advancing much beyond the second round.
After losing 2-0 to England in their opener, a more perplexing 1-0 loss
to Colombia followed. Tunisia's fate was sealed and Polish coach Henry
Kasperczak was fired. Without a chance to advance, Tunisia suddenly was
playing for pride alone.
Kasperczak's replacement, Ali el-Selmi, said the match would be an
effort "to honor Tunisian and Arab football with a good performance against
a strong team."
Tunisia achieved that objective by scoring a goal and holding the
Romanians to a draw.
"The first half time was the best moment we had out of the three
matches," said el-Selmi after the match.
The performance was a marked improvement over the two previous matches
where Tunisia looked like it had a hard time functioning as a team. In the
match against England, its defense showed serious weaknesses. In the
showdown against Colombia, the defense got its act together, but the
offense failed to pull its end.
A frustrated Sami Trabelsi, team captain for those two matches,
complained that it was unfortunate that the team had to pay the price for
differences in abilities between the defense and offense.
"In the first match against England, we were playing at a disadvantage,
against a team that had more experience. Against Colombia, we weren't able
to put our best foot forward," said striker Sellmi, who plays for FC
Nantes.
The shortcomings were not evident against Romania, especially in the
first half of the match where Tunisia proved capable of dominating a match,
but also playing the way its players said they can -- with skill.
"I think we played a match which can be a source of pride for Arab
soccer," Sellmi said after the Romania match.
Trabelsi said, "We did not succeed in showing the real Tunisian soccer
in this World Cup, until the very end, when it was too late. We were
lacking at first in physical stamina, in technique."
And while the result of the match against Romania showed to players and
fans alike that Tunisia is capable of holding its own against strong team,
Trabelsi believes that a more valuable lesson was learned.
"Most important is that we gained experience, confidence and the
knowledge that with more practice, we will be able to put on a stronger
performance in the next Cup."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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