Sweden rout Tunisia 5-1 as Ayari, Isak and Gyökeres shine in World Cup opener

Sweden opened its World Cup campaign on Monday with a commanding 5-1 win over Tunisia in Monterrey, powered by a standout performance from Premier League forwards Viktor Gyökeres and Alexander Isak, plus two goals from Yasin Ayari. Graham Potter’s side extended its unbeaten run in World Cup opening matches to five, and the victory gave Sweden an ideal start in Group F.

After scraping into the tournament only through a playoff in March and failing to win any of its regular qualifying games, Sweden showed far more authority here. It struck twice in the first half-hour. Tunisia’s goalkeeper misjudged a long ball from Victor Lindelöf near his area, Gyökeres had one follow-up effort blocked, and Ayari then smashed the loose ball into an empty net from 25 meters. In the 30th minute, Gyökeres set up Isak, who finished a lethal counterattack with calm precision.

Tunisia responded before halftime when Omar Rekik headed in Hannibal Mejbri’s cross, but Sweden regained control after the break. In the 60th minute, captain Ferjani Sassi lost the ball under pressure from Isak, who turned provider for Gyökeres to score from close range. Gyökeres, now with 15 goals in his last 16 international appearances, continued his prolific run.

Tunisia briefly threatened late on through Mejbri’s creativity, but Sweden punished the openings again. Mattias Svanberg finished a well-worked move in the box, and Ayari completed his brace with another long-range strike to make it 5-1. Sweden now turns to a difficult second Group F match against the Netherlands, who drew 2-2 with Japan. Tunisia, which has not won a World Cup opening match since 1978, faces a tough path to the knockout stage and remains in Guadeloupe ahead of its next game against Japan.