Tunisia Replace Sabri Lamouchi with Hervé Renard
Tunisia have dismissed head coach Sabri Lamouchi following their 5-1 loss to Sweden in their opening match in Monterrey and appointed fellow Frenchman Hervé Renard as his successor.
Lamouchi became the first coach to be sacked during the tournament. He was appointed in January on a contract extending until 2028. Tunisia still have matches scheduled against Japan and the Netherlands.
Under Lamouchi, Tunisia won only one of five games, a 1-0 victory over Haiti in March, while suffering a 1-0 defeat to Austria and a 5-0 loss to Belgium in World Cup warm-up matches earlier this month.
The Tunisian Football Federation (FTF) announced that Renard will lead the team until the conclusion of Tunisia’s World Cup campaign. Their statement added, "The agreement also stipulates that negotiations will be opened after the World Cup campaign to consider a long-term partnership based on specific sporting objectives."
The state-owned broadcaster Television Tunisienne reported that Renard was expected to arrive in Monterrey later on Tuesday to join the squad.
Renard is a two-time Africa Cup of Nations winner and previously coached Saudi Arabia at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where he led them to a notable victory over eventual champions Argentina in the group stage. He subsequently coached the French women's team at the 2023 World Cup and the Paris Olympics before returning to Saudi Arabia to help the men's team qualify for a third consecutive World Cup. He was replaced by Georgios Donis in the lead-up to the tournament.
Iran 2-2 New Zealand: Team Faces Difficulties Amidst Tournament
Iran played a challenging match to draw 2-2 against New Zealand, amid significant difficulties in the lead-up to their tournament. After the match, Iran’s head coach Amir Ghalenoei criticized FIFA and expressed frustration toward the US government after being instructed to leave Los Angeles immediately.
"We’ve spent so much time commuting in the air. They didn’t even give us time to recover after the game today. They said we had to leave immediately. It’s very important for us to have time for recovery and yet we were asked to return to Tijuana and we are really troubled by that."
"We do not know why they are returning us. I think it’s very strange. It seems like others are doing the planning for us, decisions are made elsewhere, we were supposed to arrive two nights before the game and we were not permitted, we were supposed to stay tonight and return tomorrow lunchtime but I have no idea why, and they haven’t told us."
"Our team is the most oppressed one in the whole World Cup. The federation is absent here. Our media isn’t here. Our management team, many of them aren’t here. We used to have a part of a coaching team to help with substitutions but we didn’t have that. Many in the technical area had to deal with that."
Iran captain Mehdi Taremi described the team’s treatment as a "disaster" and revealed that FIFA president Gianni Infantino had visited the dressing room, offering assistance to the players. Footage published on X shows Infantino telling the players, "you are stronger than everything," adding that the team was "writing history, the whole world is watching you."
Infantino is also reported to have assured the players that he would do what he could to facilitate travel for more members of the Iranian delegation, who had not received visas, to attend their remaining group matches in the United States.
World Cup 2026 Group Stage Progress and Upcoming Matches
With two-thirds of the first group games completed, the tournament has seen a mix of results including draws in Spain 0-0 Cape Verde, Belgium 1-1 Egypt, Saudi Arabia 1-1 Uruguay, and Iran 2-2 New Zealand.
Looking ahead, matches such as France versus Senegal, Iraq versus Norway, Argentina versus Algeria, and Austria versus Jordan are scheduled. Questions remain about how the 2022 finalists will perform, the status of the African champions, and the impact of new teams from Asia. The tournament has already produced several surprises, and with many games still to be played, more unexpected outcomes are anticipated.
Fans are encouraged to share their thoughts on the performances so far and their expectations for upcoming matches. Whether watching from home or attending in person, viewers are invited to send predictions, questions, comments, or concerns via email.
