Tunisa earned a heroic victory over world champions France but failed to secure qualification at the World Cup after Australia’s shock win over Denmark.
Les Bleus were handed a fright when Nader Ghandri escaped the clutches of Raphael Varane to prod home, but VAR came to the rescue for Didier Deschamps’ side to rule it out for offside. Wahbi Khazri then unleashed a rocket of a volley that Steve Mandanda carefully punched to safety. But Tunisia eventually broke through in the second half, as Khazri dribbled past Raphael Varane and slid the ball past Mandanda to spark wild scenes of celebration among the boisterous Tunisia fans.
Deschamps sent on Kylian Mbappe after 63 minutes, with the PSG star causing havoc as Tunisia desperately defended their lead, including a decent stop from Aymen Dahmen after a sensational dribble and shot from a tight angle.
Antoine Griezmann thought he had equalised in the 98th minute of the match, only for VAR to belatedly intervene. The Socceroos held on for second spot, but the full-time whistle prompted jubilent scenes of celebrations for Tunisia and their consolation win.
Here are the player ratings for Les Bleus at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan:
Player ratings
Mandanda - 6: Dealt with a beautiful Khazri hit that moved a lot in the air.
Disasi - 6: Marshalled the back post well, unable to cover Varane’s mistake for the goal.
Konate - 6: Stood tall amid the chaos surrounding him at times, no nonsense for
Varane - 4: Struggled to contain Anis Slimane at times and lost Nader Ghandri for the goal disallowed by VAR. And then easily beaten by Khazri for the goal.
Camavinga - 4: Really struggled at left-back, easily beaten by Aissa Laidouni.
Fofana - 2: Dreadful return ball when Coman had moved into a potential one on one position and then flopped to the ground theatrically, outmuscled by Aissa Laidouni, who could have punished him with a goal. Weak for the goal too.
Tchouameni - 5: A tough start, struggled with the pace of the game and hauled down Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane to concede a free-kick in a dangerous area.
Guendouzi - 5: Failed to impact the game in a more advanced role.
Veretout - 4: One-paced and not able to track runs.
Coman - 4: Dreadful touch and shot as France opened up Tunisia on the break in the first half.
Kolo Muani - 5: Nice control, strength and then explosion to spin and drive towards goal and lay off.
Mbappe - 7: Added fear into the Tunisian defending, as others found space around him. A classy dribble and fierce strike late on from a narrow angle.
Griezmann - 7: Added a spark to the French attack and thought he earned a point in stoppage time with a fine finish, only for VAR to deny him. Will be crucial in the knockout stages.
