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Carthage Eagles Tie Palancas Negras 1-1 in Coelho’s First Match

August 20th, 2008 | By: Rami | 23 Comments »

Darragi on you I know I’ve been missing in action for the past few weeks. It’s set to continue for two more days. I’m traveling but I managed to find a wifi hotspot to watch our boys take on Angola. No time for a real analysis of the match but despite the last minute equalizer I thought it was a positive performance for a first outing under a new coach.

Coelho used everyone but Khalloufi and the players all looked intent on showing what they can do. Out of all the players I was most impressed with Darragi. In his Eagles debut he provided a clever flick pass to Boussaidi who centered to Chermiti for a sliding left footed goal and forced a great save from the Angola keeper with a trademark canon strike.

There’s more to talk about but I’m afraid my current schedule doesn’t allow me to do so. Drop a line and let everyone know what you take away from this match. Sorry again for the lack of coverage recently. I’ll be back in full force very soon and I’ll be sure to update this post with pictures and highlights. It was good to see so many players included today. The coach should have a clearer picture of how to build the team now.

Too bad we didn’t get a win for Coelho today but the result of this match never really mattered much anyway. The positive thing is we are trying to play a stylish brand of football instead of taking a reactive anti football approach. I think we’re on the right track but there’s definitely improvements left to be made.

What did you think?

Update

Notable performances (both good and bad):

1. While we all know Silva Dos Santos can score goals even when he is out of shape, it was comforting to see him actually be able to hold the ball up and with some nice evasive maneuvers that left Angolan players tackling air. He’s still not 100 percent but if he continues to get starting minutes at Sochaux like he is now, things are only set to improve for him and for us.

2. Namouchi was injured in this match and according to his club he wasn’t even supposed to play. He came to Tunisia with a injury certificate that should have ruled him out. Not sure why Coelho didn’t heed the advice of the club’s medical team. He aggravated a hamstring problem and will now be out four to six weeks, ruling him out of the Burkina Faso game. This is the last thing we wanted to hear concerning a talented player who only just made his return to action after tearing his ACL last year.

3. While Namouchi’s injury was certainly a downer, it opened the door for Darragi to make his first foray onto the pitch in a Tunisia jersey. He fit in instantly and wasted no time making clever passes and forcing Angolan defenders into awkward positions with his constant movement off the ball.

mouihbinho 4. Mouihbi started off on the right in a playmaking role. While he made some good dribbles and a few nice passes, it looked like his timing and decision making failed him at crucial moments, leading to the breakdown of some promising attacks. He made up for this with his intelligent defensive positioning. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him make that many successful tackles. After one of them I heard Coelho yell: “Bravo Mouihbi c’est ca eh!” I guess the new coach likes him then. What’s great about the CA striker is that not only is he technically skilled but he has a strong build which is valued more and more in football these days.

5. At the beginning of the match when I saw Santos and Chermiti on the field together I started wondering how that was going to work. While Lemerre always seemed content to have one of the other on the field (usually Santos because the Frenchman never really trusted youth too much), Coelho showed his attacking mindset by including a lot of offensive elements in the team. Chermiti played out on the left which was an unorthodox place to put him. It didn’t work out perfectly but it wasn’t a failure either as the Hertha Berlin striker managed to get himself on the score sheet with a fine finish. We’ll see if Coelho continues to put him out on the left in the coming match.

6. After his team was relegated to the second division in Germany, it was a relief to see our captain, Jawhar Mnari, in good form. He was sorely missed at Nurnberg near the end of the last season but he looks injury free and ready to lead us. He is a calming influence on the field which makes him a very valuable asset to such a young team.

7. While I know he has quality, Ben Dhifallah didn’t do himself many favors in this match. He missed two promising opportunities to get us an insurance goal and then compounded those misses by handing out an assist on the Angola equalizer. Not exactly what you want your center forward doing right? Besides that he was pretty dominant in the air, which is something we’ve come to expect from him. Hard to tell whether Coelho will call him up after this latest outing. You can’t judge a player on one game so I think that Ben Dhifallah still has a chance to figure in our list. His best bet is to start scoring for Etoile and force himself in.

8. For someone who isn’t even getting on the field at Bayer Leverkusen, Haggui looks like his usual assured self in defense. The fact that he was given the captains armband when Mnari came off shows just how much trust we put in him. The only disappointing thing was that him and Flavio got into a scuffle and Haggui ended up almost strangling the Angolan. This isn’t what you want to see from a captain!

9. Mathlouthi wasn’t tested too much but didn’t make any fatal mistakes and neither did Arbi Mejri. It can’t be overstated how important it is that Coelho is giving young keepers a real chance in the national team jersey.

10. Traoui had a forgettable game. Ever since that fantastic strike against Senegal I just haven’t seen much from him. It’s not time to give up yet but based on this latest performance, he doesn’t look like a starter to me.

11. Boussaidi and Mikari both impressed me with their attacking roles. While Ben Frej is arguably more talented than Boussaidi, he’s yet to replicate his amazing performance against Cameroon in the African Cup.

12. I don’t get to see enough of Ragued with his club team so I can’t say I know much about him. All I could tell from this last much is that his best quality is that he takes losing possession personally and is very tenacious in midfield. With that said, he doesn’t look like a starter. I think Ben Zekri also belongs in this category.

13. After a shadowy existence under Lemerre, Dhaouadi finally got to display some of his skills on the international stage. He wasn’t spectacular but he showed the he can whip those crosses in from the left. Not all of them found their target but most of them were put into dangerous positions which is good.

The Goals:

Tunisie vs angola but de chermiti 1-0
Uploaded by zizo04

Tunisie vs angola but de l'egalisation angolaise 1-1
Uploaded by Artiste-Tunisien

Tags: Chermiti, Coelho, Darragi, Group H, Santos

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Comments

By Abdullah | August 20th, 2008 at 6:28 pm

Rami i think we all appreciate you taking time on your vacation to share your thoughts about the game,

On about the match, i was most impressed by yassine mikari, he was steady as a rock and very active also he was starting counter attacks and winning duels.
You could see he was really trying to impress the coach and show him he wants to be on of the starting eleven.

I did see haggui make one terrible mistake by passing the ball a bit too slow back to balbouli, nearly giving the angolese an oppurtunity to score, but overall he did good.

Overall i was very pleased to see our team playing technical football, passing, and creating oppurtunities to score.

m3ak rabi tounes!

Posted from Netherlands

By Achraf | August 20th, 2008 at 8:15 pm

It was a very well played match for our boys. I was very impressed with derragi aswell rami. He showed great shooting and passing skills. Too bad Namouchi is back to being injured again. Hopefully he will recover quickly. I was also impressed with Mouihbi, he had a great game. I am happy to see haggui back in action. Hopefully Chikahoui will be ready for the september 6th game against Burkina Faso.

Posted from United States

By Rachid | August 20th, 2008 at 8:45 pm

You guys must have seen a different game other than the one I just saw! It was “same shit, different day.” We ended up losing pretty much for the same reasons Club African (the Tunisian Champion) lost to Harass Houdoud, a no-name team from Egypt: lack of spirit and desire to win. Yes, it was not a serious game, but a win before facing BF is needed for the team morale. Aside from Mikari, most were lazy bums. Hagui was a solid defender, but where was the mid field? What did Mouihbi do? Ben Yahia was pretty much missing in action, just like Traoui! No wonder not may people showed up to watch the game. Meanwhile, Morocco beat Benin 3-1! I think Coelho is being OVER ACCOMMODATING, probably because of too much noise in the background.

By Moni | August 20th, 2008 at 9:13 pm

Rachid has a point !

Posted from Netherlands

By Rami | August 20th, 2008 at 9:27 pm

Rachid, we didn’t lose but you’re right about a negative effect a last second goal has on team confidence. I also agree Ben Yahia was far from his usual level. Mouihbi showed techniqueI but just made bad decisions with the ball which is unlike him. Still he showed a lot of defensive agression with plenty of well timed tackles. That kid is a warrior and so is mikari like achraf said. I was particularly pleased with our movement. Some moves were actually imaginative which is such a departure from lemerrian tactics. We pretty much dominated that game and were unlicky not to get the win. Angola is a good team and we kept up pressure even after making so many substitutions. Another positive is that santos looks much fitter and lively.

What did you think of Ragued? I still feel like I’ve yet to see the best he can produce.

Posted from United States

By Abdullah | August 21st, 2008 at 4:10 am

That’s pretty much where i was pleased about rami.. the movement with and without the ball, some very well executed combinations and much more offensive play.
But i did feel like sometimes they still couldnt reach Chermiti or Santos, i’ve noticed that a lot about our play, i can imagine that it has to be frustrating for such talented players who are just waiting to get the ball.

I think we should be very happy with these changes because it has been a very long time since i have seen l’equippe play like this, and sure Rachid a win is better for the teams morale but at least coelho got to see a lot of our capabilities before playing a qualification match.

Also i wouldnt worry too much about us losing in the long run seeing as Lemerre would have never ” sacrificed ” a friendly to see all our players strenghts.

Rami, Ragued is one solid player too (from what i saw) but i agree with you on the fact that he still needs to show us what he can do, and i think Coelho thinks the same even though he showed us a glimpse of the desire he has to play, so i think he has potential ( he is strongbuilt too ).

Posted from Netherlands

By Abdullah | August 21st, 2008 at 4:57 am

Also, http://angola.worldcupblog.org/group-d/angola-3-0-benin.html, so comparing the match between morocco and benin and our match yesterday seems to be like comparing potatoes with carrots.

Posted from Netherlands

By Alex | August 21st, 2008 at 7:38 am

Hi all,

Could someone tell me if Manucho played for Angola?

Thanks.

Posted from Ireland

By Rachid | August 21st, 2008 at 5:05 pm

Good one, Abduallah! I thought it was apples and oranges. In retrospect, I think we should give this team a break. Overall, they looked very liberated and livelier as if Lemerre was a very dark cloud hanging over them before. Good luck in the coming challenges.

Posted from United States

By Momo | August 22nd, 2008 at 4:50 pm

Hey Rami..Tijani Belaid scored two goals during Slavia Prague’s 5-0 demolition of FC Bohemians today. Great news to hear he’s scoring goals and playing very well in the Czech league. He reminds me a lot of Cesc Fabregas man..maybe someday he’ll join him at Arsenal But its confusing though why Coelho didn’t call him up. The guy is in a great form and played a full 90 minutes, and Coelho said he was not ready to play, just as with the case of Jemaa? I’m waiting on Jemaa to score this Monday against Nimes, and then Coelho and Mejri would be caught off-sides like idiots.

By marwen | August 22nd, 2008 at 9:05 pm

I thought that Angola got was as if ben dhifalla was on the team with the angolans . He gave a perfect pass that went through our defence to team Angola for them to score a goal. Done think he will be picked for Tunisia next time.

By Tahar | August 22nd, 2008 at 11:36 pm

Ive gotta throw out a happy birthday to Rami. Guys show your respect for the blog leader!
bonne anniversaire!

Posted from United States

By skander | August 23rd, 2008 at 5:01 am

Happy birthday then, Rami

Posted from Sweden

By Achraf | August 23rd, 2008 at 8:15 am

Happy Birthday Rami

Posted from United States

By Yassine | August 23rd, 2008 at 8:38 am

I was at El Menzeh wednesday and I enjoyed the game even if It wasn’t really entertaining, I was happy to see Mouihbi & Chermiti together on the pitch and the midfield playing the ball forward. Darragi’s performance was good too, he replaced Belaid well.
Happy Birthday Rami!

By Rachid | August 23rd, 2008 at 10:10 am

Marwen, you have a point about Bendhifallah, but he really does have good skills. The most important one in my opinion is his ability to force the opponent to make mistakes in dangerous zones. He is also a good player with his head. Another skill is his ability to give excellent passes for other players to take direct shots at the goalie. You may recall Chikhaoui’s goal against an African team before Ghana 2008. In this last game, he also placed Darraji well and almost scored when he fired a good shot at the goalie. Overall, I think he is an effective scorer. If he was not, I doubt very much he would last in my beloved Etoile!

Happy birthday Rami!

By Momo | August 23rd, 2008 at 11:33 am

I think Bendhifallah is a good player, but not good enough to be on the starting eleven of the national team. I think others have to be given the opportunity to play as well. There are players in that did not take their chance like Amir Akrout, Hamza Younes, hopefully Benkhalfallah and (maybe) Eneramo. All these players can match Bendhifallah or even play better than him, they just need to be given a chance. Coelho has to bring in new players and add depth to the National pool as much as possible ahead of some very demanding qualifications. Inchallah with the return of other key players as well such as Ghezal, Mehdi Nafti, Jaidi, Ben Saada, Chikhaoui, Belaid and Jemaa we’ll be able to see more competition between the players and a better quality football. What I saw against Angola was a worth-noting performance. I was impressed by Darraji, Chermiti, Hagui, Mouihbi, Mnari and Mikari. The dark point is Ben Zekri. He shouldn’t be on the national team. He’s a very average player. He lost most duals during the time he played, and he also has very bad timing which is crucial for center backs. I don’t think Coelho will call him up anymore.

By Achraf | August 23rd, 2008 at 8:16 pm

Wow!!!!! Hammam Sousse beat Esperance 2-1. Congrats Hammam Sousse! Darragi had many chances that he missed. Looking forward towards tommaro’s game CAB vs ESS.

Posted from United States

By Rami | August 24th, 2008 at 10:32 am

Thanks for the all the kind birthday wishes everyone! One year writing and its not set to stop. You all make it worthwhile!

By Abdullah | August 24th, 2008 at 2:01 pm

Happy birthday Rami !!!

Posted from Netherlands

By Achraf | August 25th, 2008 at 12:40 pm

Wow three tunisian internationals scored today and they are defenders. Wissam El Abdi from Egypt team zamalek scored in the 2nd minute. Yahia also scored on the 29th minute in france and played a full 90 minutes. And our favorite, Yassine Mikari scored in the 69th minute for his club Grasshopper Zurich in Switzerland. I am proud of them.

Posted from United States

By Houssem | August 26th, 2008 at 7:10 am

bad news : Lorient’s medical staff confirmed that Namouchi has a torn muscle fiber, and he won’t be able to play for the next 4 to 6 weeks, which means he will be missing against Burkina Faso on Sep. 6th

Posted from Germany

By Rami | August 26th, 2008 at 7:14 am

Achraf, it’s always nice for our expats to get goals and it’s even more of a pleasant surprise when it’s defenders.

Houssem, heard about that and it’s annoying. At least Darragi showed that he can replace him well in the last game. Lorient must be pissed as hell and Namouchi too. Hopefully this is the last one in such a long string of injuries.

Comments are closed