Tunisia World Cup 2022 squad list, fixtures and latest odds

Tunisia players react - Tunisia World Cup 2022 squad list, fixtures and latest odds - Carl Recine/Reuters
Tunisia players react - Tunisia World Cup 2022 squad list, fixtures and latest odds - Carl Recine/Reuters
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Tunisia exited the World Cup on Wednesday with their heads held high and had made their supporters happy, coach Jalel Kadri said after a shock 1-0 win over holders France that still proved not enough for a place in the next round.

Tunisia needed the victory, plus a stalemate in the other Group D clash between Australia and Denmark, to secure a top two finish but were thwarted by the Socceroos’ 1-0 win over the Danes that put Australia into second place instead.

"It’s a historic win for us over the defending champions, but we wanted to qualify for the next round; this was our main aim," Kadri said.

"Unfortunately, we exited the tournament, but we also left the game with a lot of honour and pride."

Tunisia finished third with a four-point haul and have now failed in six World Cups to get past the first round.

"It wasn’t easy to collect these four points, only one of the games we played was not on the expected level and that was when we played versus Australia."

Tunisia started their campaign with a 0-0 draw against more fancied Denmark but then looked tired as they lost 1-0 to Australia.

Tunisia World Cup 2022 squad

Goalkeepers: Aymen Dahmen (CS Sfaxien), Bechir Ben Said (US Monastir), Mouez Hassen (Club Africain), Aymen Mathlouthi (Etoile Sahel)

Defenders: Ali Abdi (Caen), Dylan Bronn (Salernitana), Mohamed Drager (FC Luzern), Nader Ghandri (Club Africain), Bilel Ifa (Kuwait SC), Wajdi Kechrida (Atromitos), Ali Maaloul (Al Ahly), Yassine Meriah (Esperance), Montassar Talbi (Lorient)

Midfielders: Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane, Ghaylane Chaalali (both Esperance), Aissa Laidouni (Ferencvaros), Hannibal Mejbri (Birmingham City), Ferjani Sassi (Al Duhail), Elyas Skhiri (FC Cologne)

Forwards: Anis Ben Slimane (Brondby), Seifeddine Jaziri (Zamalek), Issam Jebali (Odense), Wahbi Khazri (Montpellier), Taha Yassine Khenissi (Kuwait SC), Youssef Msakni (Al Arabi), Naim Sliti (Al Ittifaq).

Who are the star names in the squad?

As Tunisia team captain, Youssef Msakni, who plays for Al-Arabi in Qatar, has won 83 caps so far.

Hannibal Mejbri made his World Cup debut against Denmark on Tuesday having started in Tunisia’s only warm-up match on Wednesday.

Cologne midfielder Ellyes Skhiri features in the Tunisia squad, having secured 45 caps and three goals since making his international debut in 2018.

Another favourite is the former Sunderland and Saint-Etienne forward Wahbi Khazri, who is now at Ligue 1 club Montpellier, and Manchester United teenager Hannibal Mejbri, who is currently on loan to Birmingham City.

What has Tunisia's form been like?

With four managers since the last World Cup, Tunisia were sorely hoping their internal upheaval will not affect performances on the pitch.

Now coached by Jalel Kadri, after replacing Mondher Kebaier who was fighting Covid, the team qualified for a second consecutive World Cup – but may be out of their depth.

They finished top of Group B in the second round of African qualifying and reached Qatar 2022 through a two-legged play-off with Mali.

Tunisia's recent international matches have seen wins over Chile, Japan and Comoros. However, their World Cup group is among the toughest of all.

What are Tunisia's fixtures?

What is Tunisia's World Cup record?

This is Tunisia's sixth appearance at the World Cup. They made their debut in 1978, before qualifying three times in a row in 1998, 2002 and 2006.

Their most recent outing was in 2018, when Tunisia were eliminated in the group phase after losing to England and Belgium.

Argentina | Australia | Belgium | Brazil | Cameroon | Canada | Costa Rica | Croatia | Denmark | Ecuador | England | France | Germany | Ghana | Iran | Japan | Mexico | Morocco | Netherlands | Poland | Portugal | Qatar | Saudi Arabia | Senegal | Serbia | South Korea | Spain | Switzerland | Tunisia | Uruguay | USA | Wales

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