100% passing accuracy: How did Man Utd player and current Birmingham loanee Hannibal Mejbri get on for Tunisia against Denmark? | OneFootball

A brave performance from Tunisia yesterday afternoon saw them earn a deserved point against Denmark in their opening game of the 2022 World Cup.

You have to give credit to the North Africans for their performance – because their opponents were seen as the favourites in this tie after reaching the Euro 2021 semi-finals last year – and Hannibal Mejbri arrived in the 80th minute to provide a solid contribution to their cause.

The Birmingham City man must have had his heart in his mouth when he dived in on Joakim Maehle just a few minutes after his introduction, failing to take the ball but the referee came to his rescue as he judged the ball to have gone out of play before the Dane was taken down.

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However, that was the only minor negative of his cameo as he played the box-to-box role well, putting in a typically energetic performance and helping his side to remain solid, something that wasn’t an easy task considering he was facing the likes of Christian Eriksen and Kasper Dolberg.

It could definitely be argued that the European side were toothless – but the African side contributed to that with their intensity and spirit from the first whistle.

In terms of Hannibal’s performance, it was a quiet display but that’s no real surprise considering he was on the pitch for only around 15 minutes. He did what he needed to do and didn’t make any costly mistakes – securing what could be a precious point as they look to secure a spot in the knockout stages.

But do his in-game statistics from this clash represent a composed display?

Firstly, one thing that was noticeable is the fact the midfielder retained his discipline and this was impressive considering he seemed to lose control during his loan club’s clash against Sunderland just before the international break.

He may have started against the Black Cats, giving him more time to lose his cool, but the World Cup is an emotional occasion for him, especially as a young player. And this is why he should be commended for conceding no fouls during his time on the pitch at the Education City Stadium.

There was a moment during the latter stages when Tunisia fans were frustrated that he passed the ball back instead of advancing forward – but it was a sensible decision and his most important assignment was to retain possession as his team looked to secure a valuable point. And he completed 100% of his passes, so he did the job he needed to do.

Having just four touches of the ball in total, he wasn’t able to stamp his authority on the game but managed to get himself in the right defensive positions to close gaps and at his age and with the limited amount of time he had on the pitch, that’s all manager Jalel Kadri would have expected from him.

Also winning his only ground duel of the game, he didn’t put a foot wrong and that should earn him more game time during their next game against Australia on Saturday, a game that will be seen as winnable.

Of course he would have wanted to be more involved – but he made one good interception and wasn’t dribbled past once.

The 19-year-old can’t exactly be called a brick wall for that because he wasn’t hugely tested – but he could have easily been overwhelmed by the occasion and wasn’t – so he should be given a lot of credit for that.