Following a stunning penalty shootout defeat to 10-man Mali in the round of 16, Tunisia midfielder Hannibal Mejbri has admitted that the nation has fallen behind.
The Eagles of Carthage, playing with a numerical advantage for more than an hour couldn’t get past the Eagles of Mali and thus missed out of the quarter final spot.
Speaking to the media in mixed zone after the game, the ex-Manchester United player said his nation seems to be ten years behind in football.
“I will say it now; we are 10 years behind in football,” he started. “We have to sit down and ask ourselves how we got to this point,” he went on.
“We have to re-educate and train in everything, learn again from the beginning from the very first jobs in football. Football in Tunisia has fallen behind a lot, especially when you compare us to countries like Morocco.”
Since winning the title in 2004, Tunisia has not done well in the competition and were eliminated at the group stages at the last edition in Ivory Coast.
They exit the Morocco tournament with just one victory; a 3-1 over Uganda Cranes.