The day Tunisia made World Cup history in Argentina

DUBAI: When Tunisia landed in Argentina for the 1978 World Cup, no Arab or African nation had ever won a match at the competition.

Egypt had been the first to try their luck at the second edition of the tournament, the 1934 World Cup in Italy, and though they played commendably against a strong Hungarian team, they ended up losing 4-2 in controversial circumstances. 

Morocco’s task in 1970 was perhaps even more difficult. They, too, gave it their best shot, but understandably came up short.

In their opening match, they took a shock lead against a formidable West German side that would eventually reach the semi-finals, only to lose to two goals by the legendary duo of Uwe Seeler and Gerd Muller. In the second match they crashed 3-0 to a Teofilo Cubillas-inspired Peru, before a 1-1 draw with Bulgaria saw them head home on a relatively positive note.

On June 2, 1978, it was Tunisia’s chance to break the duck. To say they were given little chance would be an understatement. Up against them in Group 2 were reigning world champions West Germany; Poland, who had finished third in 1974; and, first up, a Mexican team that had won the CONCACAF Championship a year earlier and was expected to easily post two early points on the board.

However, in the days when teams like Tunisia, and others from Africa and Asia, would rock up to the World Cup as completely unknown quantities, coach Abdelmajid Chetali had quietly built a formidable team that was gaining in momentum.  

Only three months before the start of the World Cup, they had reached the semifinals of the Africa Cup of Nations only to lose 1-0 to eventual winners Ghana. Perhaps more indicative of their growing pedigree was the performance that had earlier confirmed their qualification to Argentina 78.

The first three rounds of the CAF qualification campaign had already seen Tunisia overcome Morocco, Algeria and Guinea to reach the final, round robin group stage with Egypt and Nigeria. This was played on a home and away basis, and going into the last match, Tunisia found themselves two points adrift of Egypt and needing to beat the group leaders to qualify for their first-ever World Cup. A draw would have seen Egypt return to football’s ultimate stage for the first time in 44 years.

It looked a tall order for Tunisia, but they would pull off a trick that, in the coming months, would become familiar to anyone who underestimated their capabilities.

A barnstorming 4-1 at Stade Olympique El Menzah in Tunis on Dec. 11, 1977, is now part of Tunisian football folklore. The sheer power and versatility of their display against an Egyptian team that had beaten them 3-2 in Cairo just over two weeks earlier should have been a stark warning to future opponents.

If the Mexicans had seen a video recording of that match, they certainly were not paying too much attention. On that memorable day, Tunisia were simply devastating, playing a brand of football that hinted at what was to come.

But on…