FIFA World Cup Tunisia vs. Australia, Tips and Preview, 26th November

Neither of these teams managed to notch a victory against their highly-fancied opponents in their first matches, but there is a clear-form team coming into this one.

Tunisia played with real discipline and structure against a quality Denmark team, coming away with a 0-0 draw and genuine confidence in its ability.

There were plenty of chances for the Tunisian team to score but for the reach of Danish keeper Kasper Schmeichel.

Issam Jebali threatened numerous times, and against a lesser defence, he may have scored multiple times. He is one player sure to be on the Socceroos’ minds on Saturday morning.

Aissa Laidouni’s work in the midfield was a standout in the draw. His style and flair may be a problem for Australia, as will Ellyes Skhiri who prides himself on midfield interceptions could make life difficult for his opponents.

Another factor working against Australia is the crowd advantage. Tunisia might not be the host of this tournament, but they have an extremely vocal and energetic fan base in attendance. This will add as much confidence to their team as it will add hostility to the Australians.

While we have outlined some areas of concern for the Socceroos, there are some positives to have come from a tough first-up loss to France.

Not many would have predicted Craig Goodwin to score the first goal of the match, but that’s precisely what happened before France pegged them back. An unfortunate second-half-lapse that saw them concede two goals in three minutes will haunt them.

Expect a tighter performance from the Australians this time, with Kye Rowles, and Mat Leckie set to continue their good form. At the same time, Goodwin has new expectations and confidence in himself after setting up the lead. It will be fascinating to see how he backs that up, especially if he can help his team be the first to score again.
Garang Kuol could be a wildcard for them, having played just the final 20 minutes of Wednesday’s loss. If he takes the pitch with a game still in the balance, he could set up something magical for Australia.

However, this one is unlikely to go the way of the Socceroos. While punters may have a solid patriotic loyalty when analysing this game, as the old saying goes, even if your passport says Australia, your wallet is a citizen of the world. The money should be headed towards Tunisia.