Last updated & checked: 10/08/2021
England begin their World Cup adventure on Monday when they take on Tunisia in a key Group G clash. Whilst the Three Lions are expected to qualify with ease, they know anything other than a victory in Volgograd could leave them with a nervy ending to the group with Belgium to play.
However, Gareth Southgate’s men will head into the game in good spirits after a few impressive friendly performances lifted the mood towards the group. They boast a lot of quality attacking options and will hope that they can cause problems to Tunisia with their fast, attacking play. There should be a gulf in quality between the sides but England have frozen on the big stage before and the North Africans will hope to put them under pressure again.
Here we will give you Tunisia vs England betting tips, look at where the game will be won, the key players and a Tunisia vs England prediction for the Group C encounter.
Our Tunisia vs England Prediction: Tunisia 0-2 England
Our Tunisia vs England prediction tips is for the European side to emerge with a relatively comfortable victory although it could take a while to break down a stubborn Tunisian defence.
In terms of the quality on the pitch, England are superior to Tunisia and have enough variety in their attack to cause the opposition real problems. Southgate is likely to be adventurous with his approach and that should mean star striker Harry Kane is presented with opportunities to get off the mark. As well as that, Dele Alli, Jesse Lingard and Raheem Sterling will look to cause problems from deep and are a very exciting combination if they can click.
As for Tunisia, they have not been helped in the build-up with injuries to key forwards which means they could be toothless in attack. Additionally, they are going to have to sit deep to contend with the pace and movement of England and that could see them struggle to get a real foothold in the game.
Our recommended tip – England to win to nil
Even though England’s defence is far from convincing, they should be relatively comfortable against Tunisia given the way the game should play out.
Southgate’s men will control the game, with the North African’s determined to play for a 0-0 but England should have enough to break the deadlock. They may have to be patient as they look for a goal but in the end it should come and should they fall behind Tunisia will have to change their gameplan. Yet, they don’t have the quality to open up a decent defence and England should keep a clean sheet.
Previous matches
The clash at the Volgograd Arena will be the third time these two nations have met and the second at the World Cup. They had previously playe din France ’98, with England winning 2-0 in a game that was remembered for trouble between the fans prior to kick-off.
England head to Russia boasting a ten-game unbeaten run that has seen them avoid defeat to the likes of Italy, Holland, Brazil and Germany so it deserves respect. As well as that, they have performed well in recent games and look to have clicked performance-wise. Meanwhile, Tunisia have prepared well themselves, losing once in ten, although it was last time out. However, even then it took a late goal from Spain to defeat them and that should prove to England this is a tough test ahead of them.
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Players to watch – Harry Kane & Wahbi Khazri
Spurs striker Kane was named England captain for the tournament and after a few excellent Premier League campaigns, he will expect to make a major impact. Yet, there will be pressure on him after he struggled at Euro 2016 so the 24-year old will be desperate to get off to a strong start personally. Even though England have talent all over the pitch you get the feeling that they need Kane to hit top form if they are to make it to the latter stages.
One man on the Tunisian team that English fans will recognise is Wahbi Khazri. The former Sunderland man has had a strong season in France and even though he hasn’t featured in recent friendlies, he’s expected to be fit. With their injury problems in the final third, he will have greater responsibility on his shoulders and his ability from dead-balls could be crucial if they underdogs are to snatch something from this game.
