Tunisian national team coach Sami Trabelsi praised the Omani side after seeing his team lose to them at the Seed stadium by the score of 2-1 in an international friendly yesterday. The home team left the former CS Sfaxien player so impressed that he wondered how they could be so far down the current FIFA rankings.
“The friendly against Oman was very useful because we had to face an opponent who had some players with good technical quality. In fact, I thin the Omani team deserves a better standing than its current ranking. Their players showed a lot of quality, a certain tactical balance and an excellent an excellent team spirit,” said Trabelsi while speaking to infosfoot.net.
As far as his own team went, Trabelsi expressed relative satisfaction with the “performance and rhythm” that his side produced despite the final scoreline. He also refuted theories that the unavailability of many of his influential domestic national team players who represented the core of his CHAN 2011 winning roster justified the defeat.
“We had eleven players on the pitch and we don’t have any players who are indispensable in the national team. We took advantage of this opportunity to use some players for the first time. We took this test seriously and I think that, in the end, the match was beneficial for both sides. I’d like to finish by thanking the Omani authorities for their warm welcome and their hospitality during our stay,” he concluded.
Despite Trabelsi’s comments in defense of his side’s performance, many Tunisians believe that this latest loss is further proof that they should rely on the recent 2011 CHAN winners in upcoming 2012 African Cup of Nations qualifiers instead of calling on European based players who have been performing poorly on the international stage for the Carthage Eagles.
