England kick off their W. Cup campaign on Monday with a match against Tunisia in Volgograd. Gareth Southgate’s squad looks settled and he was boosted on Friday with the return of Marcus Rashford to training for the first time in Russia, after he suffered a slight knock in England’s final training session at St. Georges’ Park.
England will be keen to get their tournament off to the best possible start, as anything but a win increases the pressure heading into the final two games. Belgium lie in wait for the Three Lions, so it’s vital for Southgate’s men to ensure qualification before they face the Red Devils in Kaliningrad.
As for Tunisia, they went unbeaten in their qualifying campaign, with four wins and two draws in their six games, finishing above Nigeria. They’ve also shown that they’re more than capable against big-name opponents, after drawing 2-2 with Portugal earlier this year, as well as ensuring that Spain didn’t score until the 84th minute, before losing 1-0 just last week. They’re a defensively solid team, who aren’t too ambitious in attack.
Tunisia vs. England Predictions
Tunisia finished above Nigeria in their qualifying group, who caused England problems at Wembley in a friendly, so this won’t all go England’s way. They’ll find this a tough match and any kind of win will do, even if it is quite dull to watch. Fans will be hoping that this isn’t a repeat of England’s opener in the last two W. Cups, which both ended badly. England should win this match, but don’t expect a goal fest.
Tunisia vs. England Betting Tips
Head to Head
- Tunisia and England’s last encounter was in the group stages of the 1998 W. Cup. England won 2-0 in Marseille. Their only other meeting was in a June 1990 friendly which ended 1-1.
- England have never lost against an African team at the W. Cup (W3 D3), keeping five clean sheets in six games.
- Tunisia have qualified for their fifth W. Cup, their first since 2006. They have never reached the knockout stages in their four previous appearances.
- Tunisia won their first ever game at the W. Cup on 2nd June 1978 (3-1 vs. Mexico). Since then, they have failed to win any of their 11 subsequent games in the competition (D4 L7). The record belongs to Bulgaria who suffered a run of 17 winless games from 1962 to 1994.
- Tunisia have also kept only one clean sheet in their 12 games at the W. Cup (0-0 vs. West Germany in June 1978).
- This is England’s 15th W. Cup. It’s also their sixth appearance in a row, equalling their longest streak in the competition (6 from 1950 to 1970).
- Since winning their only W. Cup in 1966, England have progressed past the quarter-finals only once, doing so in 1990 (4th place). England have also topped their group only once in their last five appearances (2006).
- England have won only one of their last eight games at the W. Cup (D4 L3), a 1-0 victory over Slovenia in June 2010. They have also never scored more than one goal in their last nine games at the tournament.
- 11 of England’s 62 games at the W. Cup have ended goalless, more than any other in the history of the tournament.
- England had the joint-best defensive record in the 2018 UEFA W. Cup qualifiers alongside Spain, conceding three goals in 10 games. They were also one of four unbeaten teams, alongside Belgium, Germany and Spain.
- Named in April 2017, this will be Nabil Maaloul’s first W. Cup as manager. He played 74 games for Tunisia, but never featured at the W. Cup.
- This is Gareth Southgate’s first major tournament as manager. The England boss played two games at the W. Cup, back in 1998.
Tunisia Squad
Aymen Mathlouthi (Al-Batin), Farouk Ben Mustapha (Al Shabab), Hassen Mouez (LB Chateauroux), Rami Bedoui (Etoile du Sahel), Yohan Benalouane (Leicester), Syam Ben Youssef (Kasimpasa), Dylan Bronn (Gent), Oussama Haddadi (Dijon), Ali Maaloul (Al Ahly), Yassine Meriah (CS Sfaxien), Hamdi Nagguez (Zamalek), Anice Badri (Esperance), Mohamed Amine Ben Amor (Al-Ahli), Ghaylene Chaalali (Esperance), Ahmed Khalil (Club Africain), Aifeddine Khaoui (Troyes), Ferjani Sassi (Al-Nassr), Ellyes Skhiri (Montpellier), Naim Sliti (Dijon), Bassem Srarfi (Nice), Fakhreddine Ben Youssef (Al-Ittifaq), Wahbi Khazri (Rennes), Saber Khalifa (Club Africain)
England Squad
Jack Butland (Stoke), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Burnley), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Fabian Delph (Manchester City), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Harry Maguire (Leicester), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Tottenham Hotspur), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Ashley Young (Manchester United), Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jesse Lingard (Manchester United), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Crystal Palace), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Jamie Vardy (Leicester), Danny Welbeck (Arsenal)