This afternoon at the Radès Stadium, Espérance Sportive de Tunis secured a convincing 2-0 victory over ES Métlaoui in Matchday 6 of the Ligue 1 campaign. A dominant display with plenty of chances, this result allows the Blood and Gold to bounce back after last Saturday’s setback.

From the outset, Maher Kanzari’s men showed attacking intent. A clear handball in the box went unpunished (4’), followed by another missed call when Bouassida was pushed during a header attempt (16’). Espérance kept pressing, with Belaïli setting up captain Meriah whose header went just wide (20’). Métlaoui responded through Soltani’s powerful strike, but goalkeeper Ben Saïd made a fine save to deny him (21’).

The breakthrough came just a minute later. Ogbelu recovered the ball in midfield and released Belaïli down the left. Instead of shooting, Belaïli smartly squared the ball for his compatriot Boualia, who calmly slotted home his first-ever goal in Blood and Gold colours (22’).

The game tilted further in Espérance’s favour when defender Ben Salem brought down Belaïli, who was through on goal. The referee had no choice but to show him a straight red card, leaving Métlaoui with ten men from the 36th minute. Before the break, Ben Saïd produced another crucial save from Ben Hassine’s diving header (43’), while Boualia was denied by the goalkeeper in added time. Espérance went into halftime 1-0 ahead, fully in control.

The second half saw Espérance create chance after chance. Belaïli was the main provider, setting up Sasse twice (47’, 54’) only for the striker to be denied by the goalkeeper on both occasions. Belaïli himself tested the keeper with a long-range shot (59’), before supplying Tka whose effort went just wide (66’).

The decisive second goal finally came in the 78th minute. Sasse combined with Belaïli inside the box, his first shot was parried, but Jabri reacted quickest and fired home to seal the 2-0 win. Espérance could have extended the lead further through Sasse (85’) and Jabri (88’), but the scoreline remained unchanged.

In the end, Espérance earned a well-deserved 2-0 victory, though the margin could easily have been wider given the number of clear-cut chances created. Beyond the result, this win restores confidence and lifts morale ahead of next Sunday’s trip to Niamey, where the Blood and Gold will face AS Forces Armées of Niger in the CAF Champions League first preliminary round.

EST Lineup: Ben Saïd, Keita (Ben Ali 46'), Ben Hamida (Laifi 81'), Meriah(c), Jelassi, Ogbelu, Tka, Jebali (Sasse 46'), Belaïli, Boualia (Konaté 70') and Bouassida (Jabri 70').
Booking: Ogbelu.