Aymen Ben Mohamed called up to Tunisia squad

Bohemians' 21 year old left winger Ayman Ben Mohamed has been called up to the Tunisia national team ahead of their African Cup of Nations qualifier against Djibouti on 3^rd June.

Although his new club may not be picking up the results expected this season, Ben Mohamed has certainly been one of the best individual performers for Bohs. It seems his efforts haven't gone unnoticed either by Georges Leekens, the ex-Belgium national team manager and current Tunisia head coach.

It seems that Ben Mohamed's talents and eligibility to play for Tunisia came to the attention of Mokhtar Addani, who works with the South Dublin Football Academy, as he had a role in recommending him to the Tunisia FA.

Ben Mohamed was born in London but moved with his family to Ireland when he was a young child. He qualifies to play for Tunisia through his father, who was born in the country. Ben Mohamed grew up in the Palmerstown area of Dublin, where presumably his paths crossed with Mokhtar Addani.

This time last year Ben Mohamed was invited to train with the Ireland U21 national team at the AUL Complex by Noel King, so he was already at least somewhere on the radar of the FAI in terms of international progression with Ireland. Nevertheless, his call-up to the Tunisia national team comes as a huge surprise and should be warranted as a great achievement for the young man.

He told the Bohemians website, “I'm delighted. Nobody saw it coming. I've had lots of relatives on congratulating me - it's huge for me and my family. That is an incredible opportunity for me and it is good for the profile of the club and league too. It shows we have a good stage here to develop."

Keith Long also commented on the news saying, "He'll miss two games for us but it's great for him and the club. He's been a real breath of fresh air and I'm delighted for him. He came to the club to improve and develop as a player, so it's deserved recognition for the contribution he's made."

Tunisia, currently ranked 47^th in the FIFA World Rankings, sit joint second with Togo in their African Cup of Nations qualifying group. Liberia lead the group by two points, while Djibouti are the whipping boys of the group, losing all four games they've played so far, including an 8-1 demolition away to Tunisia last summer.

Ben Mohamed will join up with the Tunisian squad before the end of May and will hope to impress manager Leekens, and earn a debut in the game against Djibouti. It's a wonderful opportunity for him to further his own footballing career, while also help bring a bigger profile to the League of Ireland and Bohemians. We here at Extratime.ie wish him all the best in the weeks ahead.