Tunisia get their World Cup campaign underway against a Danish side who will be quietly confident ahead of their opener at the Education City Stadium.
To Win Match
Denmark 3/5 | Draw 5/2 | Tunisia 5/1
The Danes are no strangers to tournament success. They won Euro 92 having not even qualified for the competition. Their participation was only confirmed after Yugoslavia were disqualified following the breakup of the country.
These two sides haven’t faced each other before outside of a friendly game won 2-1 by Denmark in December. The Scandinavian outfit are obviously the favourites here, but I wouldn’t necessarily pile into a high-scoring affair.
Defensively speaking, Kasper Hjulmand’s take confidence from eight clean sheets in their last 10 games, and with a fully fit Christian Eriksen, the Danes should have more than enough creativity going forward to unluck a sturdy defensive line.
Tunisia occupy 30th place in FIFA World Rankings and will know they are facing a strong European outfit here. Along the road to the finals, Tunisia earned wins over the likes of Chile and Japan – but I wouldn’t read too much into that.
Manchester United’s Hannibal Mejbri has shown to be a fiery character and happy to play his football in the trenches. His side will likely need more with such a mentality, they likely won’t have much of the ball, but the closing of passing lanes and making the ugly work count is really where their bread will be buttered.
Don’t misunderstand, though. Tunisia aren’t mugs, and I wouldn’t be completely against the outside bet of them getting something from the game. They have previously played at – and picked up results – at this level.
Verdict: Under 2.5 Goals 4/7
I think Denmark boast the superior squad – of that there is no question. They have all the capabilities to win this sort of game and probably will.
Tunisia can tuck in and make life difficult, frustrating their opponents who will know all the pressure and expectation lie with them. It’s early in the competition, and for the most part, we are trying to build up our coffers as well, Under 2.5 Goals makes sense here.
