Tunisia hired former Morocco and Saudi Arabia World Cup manager ?Herve Renard to replace Sabri Lamouchi, who was fired after a 5-1 defeat to Sweden in Sunday¡¯s World Cup opener.
Lamouchi was appointed in January. He oversaw only one victory ?in five matches, a 1-0 friendly win over ?Haiti, and ?his team scored only twice in ?his brief tenure.
Renard, 57, will have five days to prepare for Tunisia¡¯s second Group F clash on Sunday ?in Guadalupe, Mexico, against a Japan side that tied the ?Netherlands 2-2 in its opener.
Renard managed Saudi Arabia to a shock 2-1 victory over eventual ?champion?Argentina at the 2022 ?World Cup. But ensuing losses to Poland and Mexico prevented the Saudis from ?advancing to ?the round of 16.
Four years earlier, ?the Frenchman guided a Morocco side that failed ?to ?advance from the group stage.
Renard¡¯s biggest successes have come in continental tournaments, steering Zambia to its only African Cup of Nations crown in 2012 and ?Ivory Coast to its second of three in 2015.
Most recently, Renard coached the French women¡¯s national team to the 2023 World Cup quarterfinals, where it lost to Australia ?on ?penalties, and had a second stint leading Saudi ?Arabia, which he led to qualifying for this ?World Cup before he was fired in April.
Tunisia is attempting to advance from its group for the first time in its seventh World Cup appearance. ?With the expanded 48-team field in 2026, the top eight third-place group finishers will join those finishing first and second in a 32-team knockout phase that begins on June 28.
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