World Cup holders France will look to make it three wins in three games when they face Tunisia at the Education City Stadium.
Venue: Education City Stadium (Al Rayyan)
Key Statistics
Tunisia are one of just a few teams who have yet to find the net after the opening two matchdays of this tournament.
They have eight clean sheets in their last ten games.
France have kept one clean sheet in their last eight games.
They have alternately won and lost in their last five World Cup games against CAF nations (W3, L2), bookended by a 2-0 win against Nigeria in 2014.
Kylian Mbappé has overtaken Thierry Henry (six goals) as France’s second-highest World Cup scorer, and the youngster is now just six goals away from the legendary Just Fontaine (13 goals).
World Cup trivia: The only two African nations not to score in the group stage of a World Cup were Algeria in 2010 and Zaire (DRC) in 1974.
Head to head
France are unbeaten in four meetings with Tunisia (W2, D2).
Latest performances in all competitions
Tunisia: L-D-W-L-W
France: W-W-L-W-L
Tunisia
Tunisia are on the brink of World Cup elimination unless they can muster a massive win over France at Al Rayyan on Wednesday.
After a promising goalless draw against Denmark in their World Cup opener, the Carthage Eagles disappointed fans by losing 1-0 to Australia last time out, despite being favourites heading into the game.
And so, Jalel Kadri’s men come into this game as one of just a few teams who have failed to find the net after the opening two matchdays of this tournament. To reach the knockout stages for the first time ever, they need to beat reigning world champions and world number four, France, whilst hoping that Australia don’t beat Denmark in Group D’s other fixture,
A draw in that other group game is likely the best scenario, as a Denmark win would force Tunisia to win by a greater goal margin than the Dane. Considering their last victory by a 2+ margin in the World Cup finals goes back to their very first game in the competition (a 3-1 win against Mexico during Argentina 1978), asking for a 2+ win over France could prove a step too far.
To make matters worse, Tunisia might have to do it with less support than usual, with reports suggesting that many disappointed Tunisian fans have resold their tickets for this upcoming match.
Possible Tunisia starting line-up
Aymen Dahmen, Montassar Talbi, Dylan Bronn, Yassine Meriah, Mohamed Dräger, Aissa Laidouni, Ellyes Skhiri, Ali Abdi, Naïm Sliti, Youssef Msakni, Issam Jebali.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
France
France will look to win all three of their World Cup group games for the second time in history when they face Tunisia on Wednesday.
The World Cup holders became the first nation to book their ticket to the knockout phase of Qatar 2022, thanks to their 2-1 victory over Denmark on Saturday. Two goals from Mbappe gave Les Blues the win against a stubborn Denmark side that scored a late goal through Andreas Christensen.
That win over Denmark followed a 4-1 win over Australia in their World Cup opener, making Les Bleus the first European reigning world champions to win their first two World Cup games since 2002. All European nations that won the previous World Cup have yet to make it out of the group stage of the following edition, a run started with France themselves in 2002, followed by Italy in 2010, Spain in 2014 and Germany in 2018.
This final group game is an opportunity for coach Didier Deschamps to rotate his squad, considering that even if France loses, only a massive win by Australia would prevent them from winning Group D.
But, they would be well advised to triumph here, as they went on to win the competition the only time they won all three group games (1998). Given their unbeaten H2H record (W2, D2) against Tunisia, they will fancy their chances of achieving that group-stage feat again.
Possible France starting line-up
Steve Mandanda, Benjamin Pavard, Raphael Varane, Ibrahima Konaté, Eduardo Camavinga, Matteo Guendouzi, Youssouf Fofana, Kingsley Coman, Antoine Griezmann, Marcus Thuram, Kylian Mbappe.
Injured: Lucas Hernandez
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Odds
| Tunisia to win | Draw | France to win | |
| Odds | 8.00 | 4.20 | 1.44 |
| Probability (%) | 12 | 23 | 66 |
Prediction
Tunisia 0-3 France
Live Stream
For details, FIFA Qatar World Cup 2022 – TV Broadcast / Live Stream
