Tunisia's missing player halts Netherlands clash as Koeman fumes at second-half chaos

The Netherlands’ World Cup group match against Tunisia was briefly suspended at the start of the second half after Hervé Renard’s side returned to the pitch a man short, with midfielder Ellyes Skhiri still absent as the countdown to kick-off completed.

The Netherlands, leading 2-0, had already taken their positions when it became apparent Tunisia had only 10 players on the field. Tunisia’s players frantically tried to alert referee Katia García to the situation, but the countdown had already expired before Skhiri eventually emerged from the tunnel.

Dutch manager Ronald Koeman was visibly furious on the touchline at the delay. BBC commentator Steve Wilson described the scene as it unfolded: “We have to pause, Tunisia are a man light, so the countdown was a bit early. And the Tunisia player at the back was desperately trying to draw the referee’s attention to the fact they only had 10 players out there.”

Co-commentator and former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock was equally incredulous, saying: “It’s incredible. You know that the clock is going down and you’ve got to be out quicker. Ronald Koeman is furious and rightly so — he’s saying, ‘How is this happening? It’s unacceptable.’” Wilson added as Skhiri finally appeared: “Here he is. Better late than never.”

The match eventually resumed once Skhiri took his place on the pitch, though the incident drew widespread criticism of Tunisia’s organisation during the interval.