FIFA Arab Cup: Tunisia let lead slip in draw with Palestine

Tunisia were forced to settle for a 2-2 draw against Palestine on Thursday at the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup after surrendering a two-goal lead at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar.

An inspired effort in the final half hour of the Group A clash saw Palestine erase the deficit with goals from Hamed Hamdan and Zaid Qunbar. The North Africans previously took the lead with a first half goal from Amor Layouni before Firas Chaouat doubled the advantage soon after halftime.

But the Eagles of Carthage failed to put their opponents away. Ten minutes after Chaouat put his team up 2-0, Hamdan fired a shot through the crowd to beat Tunisia goalkeeper Aymen Dahmen and the momentum completely switched in favor of the Asian confederation representatives.

And they found their equalizer in the 85th minute when the defense failed to clear a hopeful cross. Qunbar fired in a low effort past Dahmen after Moustafa Zeidan won the loose ball and passed over to the Kuwait-based forward.

The Eagles of Carthage had an excellent opportunity to regain the lead early in second half stoppage time. But after a low cross found Ismael Gharbi wide open eight yards from goal, the FC Augsburg attacker’s shot was brilliantly saved by goalkeeper Ikram Rami Hamadeh.

It will be a difficult result for the North Africans to accept, who surprisingly only have one point after Thursday’s clash and their 0-1 defeat to unfancied Syria in their Group A opener. They will now have to defeat hosts Qatar on Sunday to have any chance of advancing to the knockout stages.