Ayari Brighton Set for Sweden Debut Against Tunisia in Group F
ayari brighton is set to make his World Cup debut for Sweden against Tunisia in the opening Group F match. The 22-year-old Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder has already said the decision to represent Sweden was simple because he was born there and came through the national teams there.
Yasin Ayari and Tunisia
Ayari’s first World Cup appearance comes with a personal edge: Tunisia is his father’s country, while his mother is Moroccan. He has said he wants the best for his parents and that he spent a lot of time in both countries on holidays when he was younger.
He also made clear why Sweden won out internationally. “It was kind of easy for me, because I was born in Sweden and came through the national teams when I was younger, so it was a simple decision,” Ayari said. “It’s been just natural for me to stick with Sweden. My father as well said, ‘You decide what you want to do’.”
Graham Potter’s Sweden
Sweden’s route to this opener included a 3-2 win over Poland in a UEFA play-off final in March, a match in which Ayari set up Anthony Elanga’s opening goal. Viktor Gyokeres scored the 88th-minute winner that sent Sweden to the tournament.
Ayari has started regularly since Graham Potter took charge of Sweden last October. Potter’s influence has been direct enough that Ayari checked with people at Brighton before the appointment, and he came away with a simple read on the coach: “He is a good person first and foremost, and second of all, a good manager.”
AIK Roots
The family connection runs through football, too. Ayari’s father moved to Sweden to pursue a career as a winger and No 10, later coached him in a local team, and the midfielder was spotted at eight by AIK, his father’s former club. His mother works behind the scenes at AIK, and his younger brother Taha is a winger there.
Sweden arrive at the opener ranked 38th in FIFA’s latest rankings, with Tunisia 45th and Morocco 7th. For Ayari, the first match pairs his World Cup debut with the country his father left behind, in a game that links his Sweden path to the family story that ran through it.
