Etouch du Sahel took a comfortable two-nil win over Bizertin in the fourth round of the League 1 regular season on Sunday. The hosts held their nerve after J. Loulendo opened the scoring in the thirty-fifth minute, and M. S. Mhadhebi sealed the result with a second-half strike. Bizertin had been unbeaten in three league outings before this setback, while Sahel sat seventh with five points from three games.
Loulendo's goal came from a well-worked short corner that caught the away defenders sleeping. To be fair, Bizertin had been second to everything in the opening exchanges, and Sahel were running out of games to turn things around. The visitors should have too much for them on paper, but the home side played the first half a man up in terms of intensity.
The second goal arrived in the sixty-sixth minute when Mhadhebi finished off a counter-attack that tore them to shreds in transition. By then, the match was effectively over, though Bizertin continued to press forward in search of a consolation. Sahel held their nerve and ground out the win without taking unnecessary risks.
Discipline proved costly for the visitors, who collected four yellow cards against Sahel's single caution. The bookings came at thirty-first, forty-first, forty-eighth and eighty-fifth minutes, while Sahel's player saw red nowhere but picked up one card at the opening whistle. Things came to a head when the away side lost their composure on the pitch.
Home dominance showed in the statistics. Sahel enjoyed sixty-two per cent possession and registered six shots on target alongside ten off target. Bizertin managed six shots on target but had fewer opportunities overall, with five blocked and five off target. The away side's thirty-eight per cent possession told its own story.
Bizertin remain fourth with seven points after two wins and a draw, while Sahel stay seventh with five points from one victory and two draws. The result ends a run of three unbeaten league games for the visitors and extends Sahel's home form, which has included a win over Shooting Stars and a draw with Union Sport Ben-Gherdan.
