Ben Silmane broke the deadlock in injury time as Tunisia defeated Mali 1-0 in Tuesday’s international friendly.
Having bowed 2-0 to North African rivals Algeria in the previous game, the Carthage Eagles approached the match against the Malians differently, putting the visitor’s defence on their toes.
The West Africans were short of chances as Mondher Kebaier’s men restricted them to shooting from outside the goal area.
They were reduced to ten men in the 32nd minute after Toure was sent off by referee Ibrahim Noureddine for a second caution.
In the 90th minute, the visiting side was reduced to nine men as Kouyate was dismissed after he received a second caution from the Moroccan Fifa referee.
With barely the last kick of the hard-hitting affair, Slimane scored the winner to send the Eagles back home empty-handed. Receiving a pass from Mohamed Drager, the Denmark-based star unleashed an unstoppable shot past Niare.
Kebaier’s side would be hoping this form continues in September when they take on Equatorial Guinea and Zambia in their World Cup qualifying encounters.
Should Tunisia qualify for Qatar 2022, that would be their sixth appearance at the global football fiesta since their debut in 1978 in Argentina.
