MUNDIAL·26

First Stage · Group F · Thursday, June 25 · Kansas City Stadium, Kansas City · 68,391 in the stands

kickoff 18:00 local · 22°C · 91% humidity

Tunisia

54′ Hazem MASTOURI (pen)

1:3

Netherlands

3′ (og)

7′ Brian BROBBEY (pen)

62′ Jan Paul VAN HECKE (pen)

tap a player for their match file

Tunisia5-4-1
Netherlands4-3-3
Aymen DAHMEN5.8Ali ABDI5.8Montassar TALBI6.1Yan VALERY5.5Mohamed Amine BEN HMIDA5.3Hannibal MEJBRI7.6Ismael GHARBI6.2Rani KHEDIRA5.9Ellyes SKHIRI5.3Anis SLIMANE6.5Hazem MASTOURI8.1Bart VERBRUGGEN6.6Virgil VAN DIJK8.2Nathan AKE7.1Jan Paul VAN HECKE7.9Denzel DUMFRIES6.9Ryan GRAVENBERCH6.6Tijjani REIJNDERS7.8Frenkie DE JONG7.0Cody GAKPO6.6Donyell MALEN7.3Brian BROBBEY7.9
from the bench

match pulse — xG per 5 minutes · goals · cards

45′90′TUNNED

goals — hover the strip for every shot and card, with names

  • 3′Skhiri0.03 xG
  • 7′Brobbey0.45 xG
  • 54′Mastouri0.11 xG
  • 62′van Hecke0.04 xG
TUN 0:0 NED0'kickoff
2' Gharbi — xG 0.17 · Missed3' Skhiri — xG 0.00 · Goal7' Brobbey — xG 0.45 · Goal9' Abdi — xG 0.06 · Missed11' De Jong — xG 0.11 · Blocked12' Slimane — xG 0.13 · Saved17' van Hecke — xG 0.08 · Missed19' Reijnders — xG 0.09 · Saved28' Gravenberch — xG 0.07 · Blocked29' Malen — xG 0.02 · Missed30' Gakpo — xG 0.04 · Missed30' Dumfries — xG 0.07 · Blocked31' Malen — xG 0.05 · Missed32' Gharbi — xG 0.02 · Missed39' Gravenberch — xG 0.03 · Missed42' Brobbey — xG 0.09 · Blocked44' Dumfries — xG 0.07 · Saved51' Dumfries — xG 0.18 · Blocked54' Mastouri — xG 0.11 · Goal61' Gakpo — xG 0.08 · Blocked62' van Hecke — xG 0.04 · Goal65' Mastouri — xG 0.02 · Saved66' Reijnders — xG 0.12 · Post66' Dumfries — xG 0.05 · Missed68' Reijnders — xG 0.04 · Saved76' Mejbri — xG 0.02 · Saved77' Achouri — xG 0.05 · Missed78' van Dijk — xG 0.04 · Saved80' Aké — xG 0.12 · Missed90' Mastouri — xG 0.01 · Missed90 + 4' Achouri — xG 0.03 · Blocked

▶ Watch every shot in 3D⟲ Replay the match

The xG race — cumulative expected goals, minute by minute

TUN 0:0 NED
1.00′15′30′45′60′75′90′3' Skhiri — GOAL7' Brobbey — GOAL54' Mastouri — GOAL62' van Hecke — GOAL0.621.84

On paper vs as played — formation sheet vs heatmap reality

TUN 5-4-1 attack →, ← NED 4-3-3 attack. The teamsheet, as announced.

16Aymen DAHMENAymen DAHMEN2Ali ABDIAli ABDI3Montassar TALBIMontassar TALBI20Yan VALERYYan VALERY21Mohamed Amine BEN HMIDAMohamed Amine BEN HMIDA10Hannibal MEJBRIHannibal MEJBRI11Ismael GHARBIIsmael GHARBI13Rani KHEDIRARani KHEDIRA17Ellyes SKHIRIEllyes SKHIRI25Anis SLIMANEAnis SLIMANE9Hazem MASTOURIHazem MASTOURI1Bart VERBRUGGENBart VERBRUGGEN4Virgil VAN DIJKVirgil VAN DIJK5Nathan AKENathan AKE6Jan Paul VAN HECKEJan Paul VAN HECKE22Denzel DUMFRIESDenzel DUMFRIES8Ryan GRAVENBERCHRyan GRAVENBERCH14Tijjani REIJNDERSTijjani REIJNDERS21Frenkie DE JONGFrenkie DE JONG11Cody GAKPOCody GAKPO18Donyell MALENDonyell MALEN19Brian BROBBEYBrian BROBBEY

The duel — team data, FIFA tracking included

28%
Possession
65%
0.76
Expected goals
1.79
22
Threat
78
10
Shots
20
4
On target
7
208
Passes completed
619
34
Forced turnovers
34
29.8s
Ball recovery time
12.6s
0.76
High-press phases
9.72
9
Fouls committed
11
2
Offsides
1
111 km
Distance covered
107 km
34.8 km/h
Top speed
33.6 km/h

Territory — where each team lived

Every player's heatmap, minutes-weighted and stacked per team. Tunisia attack →, ← Netherlands attack. Brighter is more presence; where the colors meet is the contested ground.

How it happened

  1. 3′Ellyes SKHIRI (Tunisia) scores an own goal.
  2. 7′Brian BROBBEY (Netherlands) scores!!
  3. 54′Hazem MASTOURI (Tunisia) scores!!
  4. 62′Jan Paul VAN HECKE (Netherlands) scores!!
  5. 67′Mohamed HADJ MAHMOUD (in) comes off the bench to replace Rani KHEDIRA (out) (Tunisia)
  6. 67′Elias ACHOURI (in) comes off the bench to replace Anis SLIMANE (out) (Tunisia)
  7. 67′Mortadha BEN OUANES (in) comes off the bench to replace Mohamed Amine BEN HMIDA (out) (Tunisia)
  8. 72′Teun KOOPMEINERS (in) comes off the bench to replace Frenkie DE JONG (out) (Netherlands)
  9. 72′Justin KLUIVERT (in) comes off the bench to replace Tijjani REIJNDERS (out) (Netherlands)
  10. 72′Crysencio SUMMERVILLE (in) comes off the bench to replace Donyell MALEN (out) (Netherlands)
  11. 75′Firas CHAOUAT (in) comes off the bench to replace Ismael GHARBI (out) (Tunisia)
  12. 77′Memphis DEPAY (in) comes off the bench to replace Brian BROBBEY (out) (Netherlands)
  13. 84′Noa LANG (in) comes off the bench to replace Cody GAKPO (out) (Netherlands)
  14. 90′Sebastian TOUNEKTI (in) comes off the bench to replace Hazem MASTOURI (out) (Tunisia)

The morning-after column · AI-written from the match data

Netherlands buried Tunisia's early promise with suffocating control

Tunisia stunned Netherlands with a third-minute goal and briefly suggested they might resist the Dutch machine. But Netherlands equalized within four minutes and thereafter imposed a possession stranglehold that Tunisia could never escape. The shape of the match was determined not by a single flash but by relentless attrition: Netherlands' high-press engine (9.7 phases to 0.8) forced Tunisia into ever-tighter defensive postures until their structure simply fractured.

The statistics exposed what happened. Netherlands' expected-goals advantage (1.79 to 0.76) barely captured their true dominance; the real gulf was ball recovery time. Netherlands regained possession in 12.6 seconds against Tunisia's 29.8—a 17-second differential meaning relentless Dutch probing while Tunisia gasped between phases. Mastouri and Mejbri fought bravely, but Van Dijk and Brobbey's press movement ensured Tunisia's 5-4-1 became a prison. The pivot was Tunisia's failure to convert a 0.17-xG chance in the second minute; going 2-0 up would have shifted the match's entire psychology.

Netherlands recovered the ball in 12.6 seconds to Tunisia's 29.8—a 17-second chasm that transformed possession into relentless territorial dominance.

62′

Netherlands' second goal arrived after Tunisia's defensive structure had entirely given way to Dutch momentum.

What Tunisia needed

Capitulated to press intensity and recovery disadvantage.

  • Ball recovery of 29.8s versus Netherlands' 12.6s guaranteed possession loss; must accelerate defensive circulation.
  • Missed big chance at minute 2 (xG 0.17) cost the match psychologically; clinical finishing non-negotiable.
  • High-press exposure (0.8 phases vs 9.7) shows defensive formation too rigid; needed proactive midfield disruption.

What Netherlands needed

Possession and press machine overcame early shock, but defensive fragility at 7' exposed vulnerability.

  • Ball recovery efficiency at 12.6s created unending attacking platforms; this speed and discipline won decisively.
  • High-press phases (9.7) systematically dismantled Tunisia's defensive shape; relentless press is the foundation.
  • Early concession at 7' (xG 0.45) signals positioning lapses; must tighten immediate reaction to forward movement.