Own goal nightmare! Own goal against Tunisia echoes World Cup history

The clash against the Netherlands turned out to be not just a disappointing World Cup exit for the Tunisian national team, but a moment that officially entered the annals of world football history. The main talking point of the match, overshadowing the final score itself, was the equalling of the all-time World Cup record for own goals in a single tournament.

Details: The nightmare for the African side began as early as the fourth minute. Tunisian midfielder Ellyes Skhiri made a wild and extremely awkward deflection after a cross into the box, sending the ball straight into his own net. This bizarre blunder added yet another own goal to this tournament’s tally, allowing the current World Cup to match the record for most own goals scored in a single edition.

While a stunned Tunisia was still coming to terms with the scale of their historic fiasco, the Netherlands wasted no time rubbing salt in the wound—just a couple of minutes later, Brian Brobbey doubled the Europeans’ advantage.

Tunisia's World Cup campaign is now officially over, and this tournament will be remembered by them for all the wrong reasons. Judging by the mood after such a historic blunder right at the start, the Tunisian players could only hope to see the final whistle and erase this World Cup from memory as quickly as possible.