Al Wakrah (Qatar): Australia beat Tunisia 1-0 on the Al Janoub Stadium on Saturday to register their first World Cup victory in 12 years as they provisionally moved as much as second in Group D behind reigning champions France.
Striker Mitchell Duke scored halfway by way of the primary half with a glancing header previous keeper Aymen Dahmen to provide Australia the lead, whereas Tunisia’s greatest likelihood got here when skipper Youssef Msakni shot simply huge.
The victory, solely the third for Australia in six visits to the World Cup finals, was the right response to their 4-1 drubbing by the hands of France on Tuesday.
Australia now transfer to 3 factors within the group, degree with world champions France.
Australia’s Mathew Leckie and Tunisia’s Issam Jebali are engaged in an aerial duel. Photograph: Reuters/Suhaib Salem
Tunisia made clear their intentions from the beginning, ranging 5 defenders and two holding midfielders throughout the pitch and welcoming the Australians to attempt to break them down.
Australia had some success getting the ball down the flanks however the closing ball into the realm not often bought wherever close to a blue shirt because the Tunisian defenders wrapped up the Socceroo forwards.
Craig Goodwin’s cross from the left heading the identical manner till it took a hefty deflection off a Tunisian defender and looped to Duke, who nodded it into the far proper nook of the web.
The objective was the primary conceded by Tunisia in opposition to any crew barring Brazil of their final 11 matches and compelled the Tunisians out of their defensive shell.
Australian gamers have fun their objective in opposition to Tunisia. Photograph: Twitter/@Socceroos
They introduced on the squad’s top-scorer Wahbi Khazri within the second half as they upped the tempo searching for an equaliser, however the Australian defence stood agency with goalkeeper and skipper Mat Ryan a chilled presence on the again.
The victory snapped Australia’s seven-match winless run at World Cups since they final picked up three factors in a victory over Serbia in 2010.