Ayari’s brace sends Sweden top of Group F with a 5-1 rout of Tunisia
Two long-range strikes from Yasin Ayari bookended a dominant night for Sweden as their forwards ran riot against Tunisia in Monterrey.
Jun 15, 2026
Sweden could hardly have asked for a better start to their 2026 World Cup. A 5-1 win over Tunisia at Estadio BBVA in Monterrey on June 14 sent Graham Potter’s side top of Group F, with Yasin Ayari scoring at both ends of the night and a forward line led by Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres doing plenty of the damage in between.
The margin flattered Sweden only a little. They were sharp from the first whistle, found a second gear after the break, and finished the job with a flourish in stoppage time.
Ayari sets the tone early
Sweden did not need long to settle. Inside the opening exchanges Ayari opened the scoring with a long-range strike from outside the box, picking his spot with the keeper stranded to put his side ahead. Isak made it two around the half-hour, cutting inside and curling a finish into the far corner.
Tunisia did at least find a reply before the interval. Omar Rekik climbed above the Swedish defence to meet a cross and headed in, and at 2-1 the game still had something to it. Whatever momentum that goal handed Tunisia, though, did not survive the second half.
Sweden pull clear after the break
The third arrived just before the hour, and it was the work of Sweden’s two main men. Isak turned creator, slipping a pass through for Gyokeres, who took a touch and finished calmly past the keeper. Isak ended the night with a goal and two assists, Gyokeres with a goal and an assist, the kind of return that will worry the rest of the group.
Substitute Mattias Svanberg made it four almost the instant he came on, turning the ball home within seconds of his introduction. The goal was checked for offside before VAR allowed it to stand, and from there the contest was settled.
Ayari had the last word deep into stoppage time, picking up possession on the edge of the area and lashing a long-range strike beyond the goalkeeper for his second of the evening and Sweden’s fifth.
What it means for Group F
Three points and a four-goal swing in their favour leave Sweden on top of Group F, and the timing could not be better. The Netherlands and Japan played out a 2-2 draw in the group’s other opening fixture, so Potter’s side already hold a clear early advantage with two matches still to come.
For Tunisia, the rebuild starts immediately. They were undone by Sweden’s quality in the final third more than by any collapse of their own, but a heavy defeat to begin the campaign leaves them with little room for error against the Netherlands and Japan.