Yasin Ayari scores twice as Sweden rout Tunisia 5-1 in World Cup opener

Sweden opened their 2026 World Cup campaign with a commanding 5-1 win over Tunisia at Estadio BBVA in Monterrey, scoring five goals in a World Cup match for the first time since defeating Cuba 8-0 in 1938.

Ayari's night

Yasin Ayari, the 22-year-old midfielder born in Solna to a Tunisian father and Moroccan mother, opened the scoring in the 7th minute with a thunderous strike after goalkeeper Mouhib Chamakh failed to clear under pressure from Isak. Ayari chose not to celebrate, briefly raising his hands in apology out of respect for his father's native country. He had previously declined an invitation to represent Tunisia ahead of the 2022 tournament. In stoppage time he fired home another long-range effort, this time celebrating with a knee-slide and cupped ear toward the Sweden supporters.

“No, I wanted him to play for Sweden. He must feel like he's giving back to the country that took care of him.”

“I know him and his brother. He made a choice, I have a lot of respect, and he's a very good player.”

Attacking chemistry

Sweden coach Graham Potter praised the partnership of forwards Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres, who created a host of chances and scored a goal apiece. Isak latched onto a Gyokeres chest-pass on the counter-attack and cut inside to make it 2-0 on the half-hour mark. Gyokeres then converted Isak's pass after dispossessing Ellyes Skhiri for the third goal just before the hour. Substitute Mattias Svanberg added a fourth in the 84th minute after a VAR review confirmed he was onside.

“Individually, of course, they are top players but I think together they can be a real threat. They complement each other very well.”

Tunisia's defensive collapse

Tunisia had not conceded a single goal during their World Cup qualifying campaign, but they shipped five goals for the second straight match after a 5-0 friendly loss to Belgium days before the tournament. Omar Rekik briefly pulled one back with a glancing header from Hannibal Mejbri's cross just before half-time, but the Tunisians were repeatedly exposed on the counter-attack. After the final whistle, German media reported that Tunisia had parted ways with coach Sabri Lamouchi.

Group F outlook

Sweden lead the group with three points, while the Netherlands and Japan sit on one point each following their 2-2 draw earlier on Sunday. Sweden's next match is against the Netherlands on June 20 in Houston.

Sweden3

Netherlands1

Japan1

Tunisia0

Sweden

3 points

Netherlands

1 points

Japan

1 points

Tunisia

0 points

Data from the article text