Sfaxien's Last Hope Crushed in Semi-Final Loss to ESZ

The Sfaxien's ultimate hope of winning a title has been crucified by their semi-final loss to ESZ. A complete failure.

The Press - When you sell the bear's skin before killing it, you're not immune to a disappointing disillusion and ultimately regret it. For forgetting that there was a semi-final to win against a tough opponent before thinking about the final and dreaming of a podium finish, Ali Mâaloul and his teammates were coldly doused by Zarzis' Sang et Or, who stole their objective.

With this qualification, the cunning coach Moncef Mcharek, who won his tactical battle against Mohamed Kouki, struck two birds with one stone: reaching the final and securing an unexpected ticket to the CAF Cup. "It's a very difficult and unexpected scenario," said CSS's assistant coach, Raed Barhoumi.

A First Half of Equal Possession and Opportunities

"We were caught off guard by a goal conceded due to a series of fouls that we could have avoided if the instructions had been properly applied. We didn't give up in the second half and created several opportunities to come back, including the last one by Nour Karoui, which was inexplicably wasted," he added.

The CSS scored two equalizing goals by Amor Ben Ali and Rayan Derbali, but their joy of coming back into the game was quickly extinguished after the VAR chamber invalidated these two goals for being offside in both instances.

Mohamed Kouki Out of His Depth

Before this semi-final loss, the coach's record of 21 wins, 8 draws, and 4 defeats, with the third place in the championship and a qualification for the CAF Cup, made him proud of his statistics, given the circumstances in which he took over the team.

However, after this semi-final loss, which he failed to coach well, he no longer has anything to be proud of. On Sunday, it was more his defeat than that of his players on the field. His approach and management of the game were catastrophic, confirming his limitations in terms of tactics.

Mohamed Ali Gâaloul's Ridiculous Error

Mohamed Ali Gâaloul, who replaced Dahmen in goal, was a lost bet with this ridiculous outing that cost the elimination goal. Mohamed Ali Jamiâa or Malek Laraissi could have done much better.

The decision to leave Iyed Belwafi on the bench for the second half, with Omar Ben Ali as the lone striker, was a very bad choice, especially against ESZ's solid three-man defense. There was no change to the initial game plan, which was flawed, and it was only realized too late that Moncef Mcharek's team had put Travis Mutyaba, Ali Mâaloul, and Mohamed Trabelsi, the pillars of the midfield, under pressure.

A Tough Task, But Not Impossible

Yes, with a limited squad due to the absence of Dahmen, Ogbole, and Aîdi, and with the physical wear and tear after the 120 minutes in the quarterfinals mid-week against SG, the task was tough and complicated. However, it was not impossible to avoid being caught off guard and putting themselves in the jaws of the wolf.

Mohamed Kouki has shown that he does not have the tactical skills to succeed in the high-stakes games that can change the course and destiny of a season. In the good run of the championship's return phase, it was more the exploits of Dahmen, Baccar, Mondeko, Mathlouthi, Mâaloul, and Ben Ali that were marked than the imprint of a coach and a cohesive, well-fitted team.

It's clear that it's not with Mohamed Kouki and his outdated, archaic, and uninnovative game plan that the CSS will find its DNA and relive its African epics.