Tunisia and Syria kick off Arab Cup with thrilling opener

Tunisia and Syria on Monday launched the 11th edition of the 2025 Arab Cup, hosted by Qatar until December 18.

The match is part of Group A, which also includes Qatar and Palestine.

Tunisia squad (Carthage Eagles):

Coach Sami Trabelsi selected the following starting lineup for the opening match:

• Goalkeeper: Aymen Dahman

• Defense: Moez Nafati, Marouane Sahraoui, Yassine Meriah, Oussama Haddadi, Ali Maâloul (one of the notable players who previously played in the Egyptian league)

• Midfield: Ferjani Sassi, Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane, Ismail Ghrebli

• Attack: Omar Al-Ayouni, Firas Chawat

Key substitutes: Seifeddine Jaziri, Bashir Ben Saïd, Hamza Al-Jelassi

Syria squad (Qasioun Eagles):

Spanish coach José Lana selected the starting eleven as follows:

• Goalkeeper: Shaher Shaker

• Defense: Ahmad Faqqa, Abdullah Al-Shami, Khaled Kerdghli, Zakaria Hanan

• Midfield: Simon Amin, Elmar Abraham, Mohamed Salkhadi

• Attack: Mahmoud Al-Aswad, Omar Khribin (experienced forward and team captain), Mohamed Al-Hallak

Key substitutes: Maxim Sarraf, Mahmoud Al-Mawas, Antonio Yacoub