TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) Tunisia headed to its World Cup qualifying match against Cameroon with two new players thanks to a last-minute intervention by the prime minister to grant them Tunisian citizenship, the national football federation announced Friday.
The citizenship request by two French-born players of Tunisian origin had originally been rejected by the Justice Ministry because they had not resided the legally dictated period in the country.
Prime Minister Ali Larayedh intervened on their behalf Thursday night and there was a last-minute scramble to print up Tunisian identity cards and passports with the required Cameroonian visa just hours before their departure.
The second leg of their playoff is Sunday in Yaounde. They drew 0-0 in the first leg and Dutch coach Ruud Krol brought in Stephane Houcine Nater of Swiss club Saint-Gall and Fabien Camus of Belgian club De Genk.
