Japan forward Ayase Ueda celebrates after scoring in the first half at the Monterrey Stadium in Guadalupe, Mexico, on June 20, 2026. (Photo by Julio Cesar AGUILAR / AFP via Getty Images)
(JULIO CESAR AGUILAR via Getty Images)
New manager, same end result for Tunisia in 2026 World Cup group play: an embarrassing defeat, this one to Japan on Saturday night in Guadalupe, Mexico. In an act of desperation, the Carthage Eagles brought in Hervé Renard to resuscitate the squad following its 5-1 defeat to Sweden last week.
But, with only a matter of days to leave an imprint on his new team, Renard — who previously managed Saudi Arabia as well as the French women’s national team, among others — couldn’t change Tunisia’s fortune in this year’s tournament.
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Japan’s 4-0 victory in Monterrey Stadium eliminated Tunisia from knockout-round contention. It featured Ayase Ueda, who collected two goals and an assist, and the blowout brought Samurai Blue to the top of Group F alongside a Netherlands team Japan tied 2-2.
Like the Netherlands, Japan has four points. They have the same goal differential, too, as the Dutch shellacked Sweden 5-1 earlier in the day.
Group F standings
|
W |
T |
L |
GD |
Pts. |
||
|
1 |
Netherlands |
1 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
|
|
2 |
Japan |
1 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
|
|
3 |
Sweden |
1 |
1 |
3 |
||
|
4 |
Tunisia |
2 |
-8 |
Japan-Tunisia marked the 1,000th match in World Cup history. It was more lopsided than it was competitive.
Under Sabri Lamouchi, the Carthage Eagles conceded Sweden’s first goal seven minutes into the teams’ World Cup opener. With Renard at the helm, Tunisia didn’t fare any better in the early going. Actually, it was staring at a one-goal hole four minutes into its second match of the tournament.
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Japan came out aggressive. The pressure it put on Tunisia was the catalyst for its first strike. Keito Nakamura delivered a well-placed cross that found Daichi Kamada in the right place at the right time. Similar to his late-match equalizer versus the Netherlands, Kamada’s goal against Tunisia was the byproduct of a deflection.
Whereas that scoring play involved a bit of luck, the rest of Japan’s goals were undeniably masterful.
In the 31st minute, Ueda called his number and beamed a shot from the edge of the box through the legs of a defender and past the outstretched arms of Tunisia goalkeeper Aymen Dahmen.
Ueda, a force for Samurai Blue during qualifying, was just getting started. In the second half, he authored a deft flick that paved the way for Junya Ito’s run toward cage. Granted Ito received a challenge from a trailing Mohamed Amine Ben Hamida, but Ito stayed poised and beat Dahmen for a goal that made it a 3-0 match.
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To finish off his prolific performance, Ueda recorded a brace by heading in a cross from Kaishu Sano in the 83rd minute. Even though Ueda was falling away, he put enough power on the ball and placed it behind the Tunisia defense and inside the far post.
Japan has navigated injuries and still impressed at this year’s World Cup. Samurai Blue came into Saturday as the favorite against a reeling Tunisia squad and didn’t leave any room for doubt while putting themselves in position to contend for Group F.
