Tunisia U-20 exit qualifiers after controversial draw with Libya

Tunisia's U-20 team ended their 2027 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations qualifying campaign with just 3 points from four matches, following a 1-1 draw with Libya in Egypt. The result confirmed their elimination from the competition in a match dominated by a major refereeing controversy in the dying moments.

Tunisia took the lead in the 24th minute through Zaid Al-Bariki, who said of his goal: "Tunisia scored first through Zaid Al-Bariki in the 24th minute." Libya fought back to level the score with a strike from Musa Ibrahim in the 64th minute, with the player stating: "Libya equalized through Musa Ibrahim in the 64th minute."

Offside controversy in stoppage time

The controversy erupted deep into added time when Tunisia's goalkeeper, Slim Bouasker, advanced into Libya's penalty area to join a corner kick. Libya regained possession and launched a rapid counter-attack, with four Libyan players advancing against a single Tunisian defender. The assistant referee raised his flag for offside, halting the attack.

The decision was technically correct, as the Libyan attacker had crossed the halfway line by about one meter when the pass was made, with Tunisia's goalkeeper being the only remaining Tunisian player between him and the goal. According to the laws of the game, a player is in an offside position if any part of their body is in the opponents' half and closer to the opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent.

A disappointing conclusion

This conclusion comes as the senior Tunisia national team is enduring a tough run of form, having failed to win any of their last five matches, recording one draw and four defeats. The most recent of those was a 2-2 draw with Botswana on 28 March 2027, where Hazem Mastouri scored twice for the Eagles of Carthage. Fans can review all the results and upcoming fixtures on our match schedule.

The next senior team fixture against Libya is scheduled for 11 November 2026 at home, as they look to improve their trajectory. For the U-20 side, the qualifiers ended in disappointment, having managed only one point from two previous matches before this game. That sole point came from a 0-0 draw with Mauritania on 5 October 2027, while they lost 1-0 to Egypt on 9 October 2027.

Further reading: Kooora