Tunisia coach Moein Chaabani says team would not succeed even with Guardiola

Tunisia’s hopes of reaching the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations have been thrown into serious doubt after a historic 2-0 home defeat by Libya, with coach Moein Chaabani saying the national team’s problems are rooted in its mentality rather than its technical ability.

Libya secured their first victory over Tunisia on Tunisian soil in the Group H meeting at the Taieb Mhiri Stadium in Sfax on Friday, leaving the hosts bottom of the group after three matches.

Tunisia have collected only two points from a possible nine, following two draws and one defeat. Libya moved to four points and went temporarily top of the table, pending the result of Uganda’s match against Botswana.

The two sides will meet again in Libya on 17 November 2026 in the fourth round of qualifying. The return fixture now carries major importance, with Libya seeking to build on their landmark win and Tunisia under pressure to respond immediately.

Chaabani blames mentality

Chaabani expressed his frustration during the post-match news conference and said the difficulties facing Tunisian football could not be solved simply by changing the manager or recruiting a bigger name.

“When you go out and see how things are done in other countries, you realise that mentality is the most important thing in football,” he said.

“The current problem is a mentality problem. This team will not succeed even if you bring Guardiola in the current circumstances and with the current mentality.”

The defeat was particularly damaging because it came in front of Tunisia’s home supporters and against a neighbouring side that had never previously beaten them away from home.

Negative records for Tunisia

The result also produced a series of unwanted records for the Carthage Eagles in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying.

The two-goal margin represented Tunisia’s heaviest home defeat by goal difference in the history of the competition’s qualifiers. It was also the first time they had fallen two goals behind in a home qualifying match.

The loss ended a run of more than 25 years without Tunisia suffering a two-goal defeat in continental qualifying. Their previous defeat by that margin came on 24 March 2001, when they lost 2-0 to Morocco in Rabat.

Tunisia 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.

Libya’s success ended a long-standing record in their meetings with Tunisia on Tunisian territory and gave their players a significant psychological boost before the return match.

Tunisia have appeared at every Africa Cup of Nations since the 1994 edition, which they hosted and where they reached the final before losing to Nigeria. They have since made 17 consecutive finals appearances, with 22 appearances overall, and won the tournament once, as hosts in 2004.

Libya’s best achievement remains reaching the 1982 final, where they lost to Ghana on penalties.