Sweden launched their 2026 World Cup campaign with a devastating display of attacking football, dismantling Tunisia with a resounding five-one victory at the Estadio Monterrey. The commanding performance placed Graham Potter’s revitalised squad firmly at the top of Group F, completing a remarkable turnaround for a team that only narrowly scraped through the European qualifying rounds. Conversely, the heavy defeat shattered Tunisia’s previously unblemished defensive reputation, as the North African side arrived in Mexico having not conceded a single goal during their entire qualification campaign.

The Scandinavian side seized control of the match early on, capitalising on a string of uncharacteristic defensive errors from their opponents. Midfielder Yasin Ayari opened the scoring in the seventh minute with a powerful strike from outside the penalty area, opting for a muted celebration against the nation of his father’s birth. The Swedish advantage was doubled on the half-hour mark following a blistering counter-attack, with Arsenal forward Viktor Gyokeres expertly setting up Liverpool’s Alexander Isak to slot the ball past the scrambling Tunisian goalkeeper. Despite struggling to find their rhythm, Tunisia managed to halve the deficit just before the half-time interval through a well-placed glancing header from defender Omar Rekik.

Any hopes of a sustained Tunisian comeback were swiftly extinguished in the second half as Sweden relentlessly punished further defensive lapses. In the fifty-ninth minute, Isak turned provider after dispossessing Ellyes Skhiri on the edge of the box, feeding Gyokeres who ruthlessly fired home his side’s third goal. The relentless pressure continued as the Swedish coaching staff looked to their bench, resulting in substitute Mattias Svanberg making an instant impact by sweeping in a fourth goal a mere twelve seconds after stepping onto the pitch.

Deep into stoppage time, Ayari capped off the five-star performance with his second goal of the evening, unleashing another thunderous long-range effort to seal the rout. The emphatic result serves as a massive confidence boost for the Swedish camp ahead of their highly anticipated clash against the Netherlands in Houston. Meanwhile, Tunisia face a daunting task to rebuild their shattered morale and defensive solidity before they meet Japan in their crucial second group stage fixture.