In my estimation, we’ve thankfully been spared of such a scenario that would have instilled doubt in the team.

Instead, Coelho has assembled a balanced team filled with logical choices that were dictated by a criteria based on competitiveness and current form. While that may be an ideal that all coaches should subscribe to, we all know that that’s not always how these things work out. In any case, here are your Carthage Eagles who will be defending our World Cup chances next Saturday (November 14th).

Goalkeepers: Aymen Mathlouthi (Etoile), Hamdi Kasraoui (Lens), Jassem Khaloufi (CSS)

Defenders: Aymen Abdennour (Etoile), Sofiène Chahed (Hannover 96), Khaled Souissi (CA), Yassine Mikari (Sochaux), Radhouène Felhi (Munich 1860), Seif Ghzel (Young Boys), Ammar Jmal (Etoile), Karim Haggui (Hannover 96)

Midfielders: Khaled Korbi (Esperance), Haythem Mrabet (CSS), Houcine Ragued (Slavia Prague), Jamel Saihi (Montpellier), Oussemma Darragi (Esperance), Zouhaier Dhaouadhi (CA), Fahid Ben Khalfallah (Valenciennes), Chaouki Ben Sâada (OGC Nice)

Strikers: Sami Allagui (Greuther Furth), Amine Chermiti (Al-Ittihad), Issam Jomâa (Lens), Ali Zitouni (Antalyaspor)

Notable Omissions

Lassad Nouioui: Even though he showed this past weekend that he’s slowly beginning to regain his form, this choice is not a dramatic one since Lassad hasn’t done enough in a Tunisia jersey to be counted on in such a pivotal match. We can’t afford to roll the dice in this type of game and I think Coelho made the right call here. No one doubts Lassad has immense talent and will one day figure prominently in our plans but right now replacing him with Chermiti makes perfect sense given the current circumstances.

Tijani Belaid: I’ve yet to see him produce his Slavia form for us. The kid is talented but he shines his brightest when you put him behind the attackers and we’ve never given him that opportunity and won’t hand him the keys to the team at this late stage in the game. The offensive midfielders that have been picked ahead of him are all in better form.

Nabil Taider: This is a mini surprise but not a controversial one because the logic behind it is sound. It’s a surprise because Taider has been a starter for us since he came on board. He put in a fantastic match against Nigeria and a less than stellar performance versus Kenya but its telling that when he’s in shape Coelho doesn’t hesitate to put him in from the get go. However, to my knowledge, the guy hasn’t played a single match with his Greek club since our Saudi Arabia friendly. While Coelho can afford to take Hamdi Kasraoui due to his experience and the nature of the position he plays, he can’t rely on an uncompetitive Taider because he is a midfielder who will be expected to run non stop in Maputo. This shows that our coach is committed to the principles he’s talked about in the past.

Farrouk Ben Mustapha: I only include him in notable omissions because he was on the last list for Kenya and Saudi Arabia. He’s young and inexperienced at this level and as a goalkeeper that’s not going to give you place in the team in this type of make or break affair. Replacing him with Khalloufi who’s been a part of these African trips is understandable even though we all know that Mathlouthi is going to start in Mozambique barring any last minute injuries.

Notable Additions

Amine Chermiti: The kid’s on fire for Al Ittihad these days and on the verge of becoming the first player in history to partake with in two FIFA Club World Cups with two different teams so long as his side handles business in their Asian Champions League final this weekend. I actually think he should have made the last list instead of Nouioui (who at the time was far from a convincing choice). Amine deserves a place in the team because he’s lives for these matches and he loves the spotlight. He is a proven goalscorer in decisive games, is accustomed to playing in Africa, and his morale is as high as can be (especially if he lifts that title on Saturday inshallah). It will be tough for him to unseat Jemaa for a starting place in our team just because we know Coelho (and most coaches) like continuity but if we need a goal in the second half, it is a true luxury to be able to bring someone with Chermiti’s speed and killer instinct off the bench.

Sami Allagui: Again, a selection dictated by current form and not by reputation or bias. Allagui didn’t make the last squad but he’s on this one now and its for the right reasons. He’s playing regularly for Greuther Furth and scored a fantastic goal a couple weeks ago. Sure he’s not a pivotal player for us and may not even get playing time but one thing that hasn’t slipped my mind is that the last time Tunisia put in a convincing attacking output, it was during a friendly versus Sudan where both Chermiti and Allagui were on the field together. We ended up thrashing our visitors by the score of 4-0 with the two diminutive forwards combining on one of the goals (they nearly did it another time but the chance was missed). Might we see a repeat scenario in Maputo if things stay level until late?

There’s more to talk about but I’ll leave that for the discussion in the comments section. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve been pretty nervous these last two weeks which I think is totally normal considering how high the stakes are. However, after seeing this roster today I’m feeling better. That isn’t to say that vigilance isn’t important but just an indication of my satisfaction with the players that Coelho has decided to place his bets on.

These guys have it within them to defeat Mozambique come November 14th. There’s no doubt about that. The list is a malleable one with lots of options which will give Coelho maximum flexibility.

Now it’s time to discuss lineups, tactics, and formations so let’s get to it! Based on the list, what’s your ideal starting 11 and probable substitutions?

Forza Tounes!

As soon as the match began it was abundantly clear that Saudi Arabia were more motivated and perhaps just more awake. They looked dangerous from the opening kick and forced a corner in the second minute which resulted in a Nasser Chamrani header that caught both our central defenders napping (Felhi especially) and also prompted Hamdi Kasraoui to make one of his typical mistakes judging both the trajectory of the ball and the appropriate moment to intercept it.

From then on out, our squad, which had only one holdover (Jemal) from the team that started against Kenya was basically condemned to chasing the match in search of an equalizer. Needless to say, that isn’t exactly a simple thing to do when you’re using a team that has never played together before outside of the training ground.

Despite some desire shown by the players to react and get back on level terms, the lack of cohesiveness in midfield as well as the lack of a final pass or a finishing touch to the few passes that did make it (thinking of FBK’s volleyed miss here) didn’t allow for us to break down a well drilled Saudi unit which, it must be said, was missing some key players who did not travel to the team due to club commitments.

The way the game was going suited our visitors a lot more than it suited us considering our glaring inability to set up organized and effective attacks against a team that was content to sit back and give us a dose of our own medicine (counter attacking football). The only players that stood out from the pack were Zouheir Dhaoudi and Sofian Chahed while Aymen Abdennour also had a couple moments.

Seeing that the Carthage Eagles were heading for what would (and now is) only their second loss under his command, Humberto Coelho brought out some of the big guns in the second half (Jemaa, Taider, Korbi, and Zitouni) to hopefully nab an equalizer and we immediately looked more balanced and finally were doing a much better job pressuring the opposition.

Unfortunately the last touch of class eluded us time and time again and we also came close to conceding a second and would have if not for some great last ditch defending by Haythem Mrabet who continues to show that, when given a chance, he really does have something to offer to this team.

As time dwindled down it became increasingly apparent that Coelho would suffer his first loss since our 3-1 defeat at the hands of France in St. Denis and that’s how things ended. Despite the result, the match did give us some insights into which players could be counted on for our final qualifier versus Mozambique.

I’m not going to discuss every single player that took part but here’s a look at the ones that stood out to me for better or for worse:

Noteworthy Players

Hamdi Kasraoui: What can I say that hasn’t already been said before? The guy needs competition and he needs it now. Nothing can replace playing in real matches with real pressure and training with Lens just isn’t going to cut it in the long term. Hope he can nab a starting spot somehow to lift his level because his mistake on our goal really was the worst way to start his first game in months. Even though there’s shared responsibility with the defenders who didn’t help him out by not covering the player, he should know when to stay on his line and when not to. I just hope Balbouli doesn’t pick up an injury because Hamdi is just not reassuring.

Sofian Chahed: One of the match’s pleasant surprises for me. It was great to see a right back at right back for once and frankly it could be argued that he looked better than he was just because I was subconsciously comparing him to Khaled Souissi who, despite his much appreciated efforts, simply doesn’t have the speed or technique for the position.

The Hannover player is a shoo-in for the spot as far as I’m concerned but we’ll see if Coelho is prepared to start him in a must win match in an African setting. It’s hard for us to determine whether he’d be ready for such a thing since we don’t much about his character but a German temperament should be helpful right?

Zouheir Dhaouadi: The most dynamic player on the field during the first half and one that fit in very well with a makeshift starting lineup in the second. He’s just a cut above of in terms of speed and acceleration and you’d be hard pressed to convince me that we can afford to keep a guy like him in the stands rather than on the bench or the field.

If he’s healthy come November, he has to be on the team. He already made a fantastic contribution in Abuja in very little time and this outing only confirmed what many of his fans already know. Could have had an assist if not for some poor positioning by Jemaa. Coelho has a real decision to make as far as the starting lineup because I’d rather have today’s Zou than Sunday’s Ben Saada in that position.

Khaled Korbi: Poor guy took one for the team as he got nailed in the nuts by Kasraoui’s knee while rushing back to defend a counter attack but the former Bardo Boy returned to the pitch and continued to do what he does best, hassling opponents and just imposing himself physically.

The grinta he brings to the team cannot be underestimated and that almost ever-present frown on his face is pretty intimidating too! Took a couple of corners for good measure to show off another aspect of his game that he has been developing. He’s successfully won me over throughout the qualifiers and today’s match was nothing different.

Lassad Nouioui: After a few relatively good touches he just never settled into the game and wasted the few opportunities he had to create something when he got the ball. He may have great technique but he still just doesn’t look comfortable and who can blame him as its technically only his first match with us.

A mediocre outing is no reason to give up on him though but if its between him or Chermiti next month then I know I’d go with the latter because Amine not only knows Africa better but he has a well established history of delivering on big occasions. Plus he’s back in shape and scoring at club level, having tallied two goals with Al Ittihad today in their friendly against Egypt’s Harras Al Hoodood (thanks to Hany for pointing that out). Lassad will have plenty to give us in the future and no one is going to make a definitive judgment after a single half but for now I think we need players who know the team better and have started big matches on our continent.

Haythem Mrabet: If we didn’t have a Korbi and a Ragued in the team I’d be pulling for him to start but I think that it’s great we have such good competition at the defensive midfield position between these three.

Ali Zitouni: Before the match kicked off he told Mosaique FM that he wanted to seize his chance and I think he did just that. Made me wonder what would have happened if we put a player like him into our game against Kenya. Even though he was probably one of the older players, if not the oldest, on the field, he looked very lively and showcased some on the ball skills that I didn’t even remember him having. Too bad he never really got a chance to put a shot on goal but I think that he made a point to Coelho that he can be relied on if necessary. Props to him for doing so.

Conclusions

So long as our players stay fit and injury free, we’re basically going to see the same team that started in Abuja debut the game in Maputo with the exception of Souissi who could be potentially replaced by Chahed and Dhaouadi who could potentially take Ben Saada’s place. I think the situation at right back is more likely to change than the latter just because the difference is so flagrant while the other one a little less so. Plus Dhaouadi can be a real game changer off the bench.

Some players utilized this match effectively to raise their stock while others didn’t stand out as much as they would have wanted to (Belaid, Felhi , Lassad, and Saihi) but a month is a long time in a qualifying campaign (hell, even one week is) so nothing is set in stone.

One thing is for sure, there’s plenty of work to be done in South Africa or Botswana during our next training camp and the players will all be incredibly determined once that time comes.

If anyone is still upset we lost this match, I have a question for you: Would you rather lose to a team fighting to redeem themselves in a not so meaningful friendly or to one in an official competition that could cost you a place at the most prestigious tournament in the world? You’d take the first option wouldn’t you? Yup, me too.

Post Match Interviews here

Download Full Match

Tunisia vs. Kenya here.

Tunisia vs. Saudi Arabia here.

The Goal

However this isn’t any old regular friendly considering all Tunisian football fans are demanding that the squad show some flair and attacking fluency that they failed to produce versus the Harambee Stars. In truth, a tie where we actually go out with the intention of constructing our attacks will be more appreciated than if we play like we did on Sunday and win unconvincingly.

This isn’t a qualifier, there are no points involved and thus this will give Humberto Coelho an opportunity to test many players, formations, and lineups that he hasn’t dared try out in other fixtures where he judged that there was too much at stake to tinker with a formula that has been producing results.

On the other hand, there are plenty of fans who still remember being reduced to tears by this same Saudi Arabian team in 2006 and thus want to our squad to set the record straight and get a resounding victory. While it’s true that this encounter is a rematch of that game which produced a result that Carthage Eagles fans still have a tough time swallowing, our team has changed so much since then that any talk of revenge isn’t really appropriate (at least in my opinion).

Besides, Saudi didn’t steal their tie on that day. They played very well and we were simply poor, losing our way after taking our foot off the gas pedal following our first goal. So there’s no sense of injustice tied to that result for there to be a true desire for vengeance or anything of the sort.

However, following an underwhelming outing against Kenya and considering our November 14th qualifier against the Mambas in Maputo on the horizon you can be sure that the players who take part tomorrow will mean business.

On the other hand you have a Green Falcons team that is still recovering from having been dumped out of World Cup qualifying in the cruelest of fashions against Bahrain. They have a lot to prove to their fans and will play their hardest to get back in their good graces.

The combination of these factors most likely means that we are set to be treated to an enjoyable game of entertaining football (thats an educated guess, not a promise). Sadly, it’s quite possible that we’re once again going to see Rades go back to its ghost town feel… I hope to be proven wrong in that regard but I’d be quite surprised if even half of the seats are filled.

In any case, what is of most interest to us will be getting to see the players in this squad that still haven’t gotten an opportunity to strut their stuff on the pitch. This is their chance to plant a seed in Coelho’s mind that they’ll be useful once its time to get gritty on the opposite end of the continent.

Our coach himself has already admitted he’ll be using this match to get a better idea of what each player can bring to the table when he actually allows them to step on the pitch. It’s funny we all want players tested now when all people usually scream about in our country is for an NT coach to settle on a lineup after a few months on the job and build some chemistry! Just goes to show that a football fan is never quite satisfied eh?

Meanwhile, Esperance and Al-Ittihad Tripoli’s UNAF Cup match has been pushed back to later this month and thus the players from the current Tunisian champions who are in the roster (Darragi and Derbali) will be at Coelho’s disposal. Not such a bad development since he might want to test Darragi in more of a true playmaker role near the end of the game (I doubt he starts).

Things I expect to/would like to see happen: 1) Kasraoui will start 2) Ben Mustapha will play the second half 3) Chahed, Haggui, and Aymen Abdennour will start 4) Zouheir Dhaouadi, Haythem Mrabet, Jamel Saihi, Tijani Belaid, Lassad Nouioui and Ali Zitouni will play significant minutes and a few of them will start 5) Derbali or Felhi will come in for Haggui.

For more details check the preview I wrote for Goal.com.

Squads

Tunisia: Aymen Mathlouthi, Hamdi Kasraoui, Farrouk Ben Mustapha, Aymen Abdennour, Sofiene Chahed, Zied Derbali, Radhouene Felhi, Seif Ghezal, Karim Haggui, Ammar Jemal, Yassine Mikari, Khaled Souissi, Tijani Belaid, Fahid Ben Khalfallah, Chaouki Ben Saada, Ousemma Darragi, Zouheir Dhaouadi, Khaled Korbi, Haythem Mrabet, Houcine Ragued, Jamel Saihi, Nabil Taider, Issam Jemaa, Lassad Nouioui, Ali Zitouni

Saudi Arabia: Walid Abdullah, Hassan Shiaan, Mansour Al Najii, Kamel Moussa, Ousemma Houssaoui, Majed Al Mashrdi, Abdullah Shoheil, Jafin Al Bishi, Tayssir Al Jassem, Mohamed Masaad, Hassan Moadh, Mansour Al Harbi, Ahmed Atif, Abdullatif Al Ghannam, Moataz Moussa, Solman Sibiany, Ibrahim Ghaleb, Yahia Al Shahri, Mokhtar Fellateh, Abdelmalek Al Ghibri, Yasser Qahtani, Nasser Shamrani, Abdulaziz Al Saaran, Ahmed Al Souileh

In Other News

- The FTF and our technical staff have decided that a little less than a week prior to our match against Mozambique the team will travel to Botswana or South Africa for a training camp to get acclimated both to the weather and to practice on the an artificial pitch in preparation for Maputo. Smart move considering our last match on such a surface was in the Seychelles and that side is nowhere near as tough a cookie as the Mambas will be next month.

-We unveiled our new kits for the African Cup today. Check here, here, here, and here for pictures.

Yea I know that’s a lot of pictures and most everyone knows my feelings on both designs so I won’t bore you with those thoughts again.

Just let me know when you find the red one for sale! I say that even though the back of its looks mighty odd. Check the second set of pictures to see what I mean.

Add to that the fact that we were less than a minute away from qualifying for next summer’s World Cup a match early and its easy to understand why Tunisians are feeling mighty conflicted about how things went today, myself included.

On the one hand we got our three points and conserved group leadership going into our last qualifier versus Mozambique. On the other we didn’t score enough goals in this game to make a draw an acceptable result in Maputo on November 14th should our West African foes defeat Kenya in Nairobi on the same day.

However, before we get too far into the conversation discussing our outlook for that date with destiny, let’s revisit today’s game against Kenya first.

The Match

What a beautiful sight to see Rades practically full for a national team match, something that hasn’t happened since 2005 when we booked our ticket to the WC in Germany by tying Morocco 2-2.

Just before the match began it crossed my mind that I had seen Tunisia face Kenya during those same qualifiers at Rades and was at the match in question. For that one there weren’t many people present and not much atmosphere in the stadium as a result.

Back then, Haykel Guemamdia opened the scoring about two minutes into the game but the goal came so early and was so unexpected that people hardly celebrated because we were kind of caught off guard by it still didn’t have the opportunity to get stressed at all to want to burst into wild chants or anything of the sort.

Strangely enough, a very similar scenario played out today in Rades with the exception of the amount of fans and the ensuing celebrations after the opener.

Once again our Eagles began the match with great intent. So much so that it only took 27 seconds to score through Issam Jemaa who was beautifully served by an accurate Ousemma Darragi cross. Unlike the last time we played Kenya at home, there was a a real explosion of joy and everyone expected that the goal would have a liberating effect on our players and that we’d be able to build a comfortable cushion thereafter.

However, the exact opposite occurred and it was eerily similar to 2005 when Roger Lemerre’s team contented itself with defending the lead for approximately 88 minutes. While we didn’t quite do that this time, it certainly was just as stressful for everyone involved considering that it was the Kenyans who took took the initiative and began causing us problems in midfield through some slick passing that belied the fact that they were playing without two of their best elements (Oliech and Mariga).

So instead of benefiting from hitting the net with our first attempt, Antoine Hey’s team looked more confident and better on the ball. Nevertheless, we were somewhat unfortunate not to have been awarded at least one penalty kick off of two fouls on Jemaa in the box. Even with that said, they weren’t 100 percent indisputable so not too many hard feelings about them to be honest and we all know that refereeing mistakes are part of this sport we love.

For the most part the fans stayed behind the team and cheered them on even though they were far off their game, both individually and collectively (save Khaled Korbi who was consistently alert and made crucial tackles, especially in the early going).

The Players

Balbouli: Didn’t have too many saves to make but fulfilled his role without making mistakes. If Kenya had been able to turn their ball possession into strikes on goal things may have been different…

Souissi: Had a hand in our winning goal since he gave the ball to Darragi with a quick throw in but as usual didn’t make it very far up the field when we had the ball. Nevertheless, I honestly think the guy is doing a pretty decent job considering this isn’t his natural position. Can’t ask that much more of him right now.

Ghezal: Our captain on the day had a lot of work to do clearing aerial threats when Kenya resorted to launching long balls towards our area near the end of the match but they were all dealt with. Had a great tackle in the second half which was wrongly whistled for a foul. Seif did admit that he should have pushed his team-mates up further to get our lines closer together and employ our press but the fear of leaving space behind him prevented him from doing so.

Jemal: Certainly looks a lot more comfortable in the center of defense than on the left side but we all knew that already. Had some good interventions and his understanding with Ghezzal from their time together at Etoile showed. It’s good to have such complementarity in our defense and we’re lucky that our four main central defenders all know each other well.

Mikari: Showed his speed on a number of occasions but didn’t have quite the same impact he did in Abuja. Fulfilled his defensive role when called upon for the most part and can’t think of any big mistakes in that respect.

Ragued: Made an uncharacteristic number of bad passes but we clearly missed his physical play and commitment as soon as he came off (I’ll touch on this later) even though he wasn’t playing his absolute best.

Korbi: Man of the match honors go to Korbi who was one of the few players on our squad that was able to impose himself physically over the athletic Kenyans. Made the timely tackles when necessary and was running constantly, unlike some of his team-mates…

Taider: He actually didn’t play in defensive midfield like we had thought he would. He was a left sided midfielder but he didn’t even come close to shining like he did in Abuja. Gets credit for attempting a few strikes from distance on rebounds but only for effort, not for accuracy as neither of his shots found their target. One hit an opposing defender on the arm but it wasn’t intentional and no penalty claim was even made.

Ben Saada: One of the players that basically went missing in this match. We expect a lot more from such a highly skilled footballer who has been a game changer at Nice this season. Needs to give more options to his team-mates off the ball and his lack of movement without it was surprising.

Darragi: Perhaps his assist led to overconfidence or he was just tired and not concentrated because the hero of the previous qualifier just didn’t do much of anything after he fed Jemaa for the goal. A sign that no matter how good he is, he still has to learn when to let go of the ball and play simple. That’s a challenge for all good dribblers really and it will come with time and experience. Also, didn’t pressure the ball enough on defense and wasn’t moving to give options to his team-mates when we had possession.

Jemaa: Made up for all of his misses in Nigeria with the winner today but as is almost always the case with Issam, he could have had a few more had he been more ruthless and focused.

Besides for the marvelous header and the missed opportunities he also contributed greatly to ensuring Kenyan defenders had to stay vigilant even when they had the ball. It had to be him that scored too didn’t it? He scored in Nairobi and I’m pretty sure he’s scored against the Harambee Stars in the past before.

Substitues

Fahid Ben Khalfallah: Gave a lot more balance to our midfield when he came into the match in the second half and could have scored a goal even but couldn’t find the target on a nicely taken shot just inside the box. Seemed to want to prove a point that he should be starting in Taider’s place and frankly he just might have gotten his message across…

Showed off his speed more than once too as he blew by defenders and should have had an assist if Jemaa hadn’t failed in getting on the end of his pass.

Jamel Saihi: Largely ineffective as he fulfilled neither of the things he went into the match to do which were to continue the pressure provided by Ragued and also create more link up play with sound passing and movement. Poor outing.

Sofian Chahed: Lively enough but no real fluency to his game. Partly because he wasn’t on the field for that long but also because he went in the main task of helping us conserve the win rather than to push forward for a second.

Coaching

Humberto Coelho and Habib Mejri grossly miscalculated this one. All we were hearing all week is Kenya is coming to defend and we’re going to have to pick them apart but clearly the East Africans didn’t read that memo. They came to play and gave us more trouble than a lot of people expected. You can argue that part of that was the goal we scored which basically forced them to search for an equalizer but honestly I don’t buy that theory since we should be expecting those situations too and have plans for all eventualities.

Biggest mistake of the match has to be taking out Ragued. It basically burnt one of our substitutions. Leaving a guy like Lassad on the bench is also a big question mark. An even bigger question mark is not having Dhaouadi even on the bench available if you need him (seriously, wtf?). I think that not only does Zouheir deserve more respect than that, he deserved to feature in this match too. Furthermore, Mrabet could could have been the guy to go in instead of Saihi too if Coelho insisted on taking out Ragued, which he basically has conceded was a dumb decision (in a more diplomatic fashion of course).

The thing that all Tunisians and even neutrals complain about was once more put on display for all to see: Our lack of audacity and attacking inefficiency. I thought that we were beginning to see glimpses of us overcoming this handicap in Abuja but its clear that you can’t get rid of 6 years of conservative conditioning so quickly, especially if your current coach is not making the right calls off the pitch in a given match.

I don’t want to be over dramatic but there’s serious work to be done in the coming month and it starts on Wednesday versus Saudi Arabia at 19:10 Tunisia Time.

Outlook

So where does this leave us? We scored in the first minute of the match, Nigeria scored in the last minute of theirs and everyone stays in their place. Though its undeniable that being denied qualification in such a fashion was a little tough to swallow (at least for me personally), the most important fact for us remains that Tunisia is still a top Group B with one match left to play.

So as things stand, a win in Maputo next month puts us through hands down. A draw is enough so long as Nigeria doesn’t beat Kenya in Nairobi (wouldn’t count on that but anything is possible) and a loss is unacceptable unless the Super Eagles somehow choke too.

So yes, we missed an opportunity to create more breathing room between us and our pursuers today but we also know that a win against the Mambas is not a stretch for a team such as ours that plays much better and is more focused when we are on the road.

Also, consider this: Today we played what was undoubtedly our worst match of this qualifying campaign. And we still won…

Pictures of the match here and here.

Post match interviews here.

The Winning Goal

In Other News

This is semi-unrelated but worth mentioning. Seif Ghezal was on Dimanche Sport after the game and was asked about Yassine Chikhaoui’s situation. He said that he doesn’t like to ask his former Etoile team-mate too many questions about his health since he doesn’t want to annoy him but from his latest discussions with our maestro’s team-mates, the targeted return date is the beginning of the return legs of the Champions League i.e. the fourth and third of November.

That isn’t concrete and its just a projected return date so this is all speculation but if he came back earlier he’d have an outside chance of being in the list for Mozambique.

Not gonna lie to you and say it can happen for sure because I think its a real long shot but there’s an outside chance. He’d have to have displayed in his club outings that he would be ready for such a rigorous match. Plus its hard to imagine FC Zurich would want to let him go immediately after he comes back.

Anyways, I’m getting too bogged down in ifs and buts. With or without Chikha, we need a win in Mozambique and we’re more than capable of achieving it.

On Sunday at 17:00 Tunisia Time (18:00 CET) we’ll be seeking nothing less than three points versus a weakened but still dangerous Kenya squad. A lot of people are getting caught up in scorelines and I can see why. We want our team not only to win but to impress and widen the divide between us and our direct rivals on goals scored and goal difference to guard against any bad surprises.

However, let us not forget that our primary focus should be to play well and achieve victory. If we stick to our gameplan and make good use of our chances then the goals should follow naturally. The players must implement what Humberto Coelho has been drawing up in training and the fans’ only responsibility will be to cheer on our Carthage Eagles with every breath for the full duration of the encounter no matter how the team performs. Also, lets not fall into the same trap as many Nigerians did, predicting very one sided scorelines. A win is a win and we’ll take it however it comes.

While we’ve all been warning against overconfidence (and that’s a good thing), the flipside of that which hasn’t been mentioned nearly as much is the weight of responsibility while playing at home. If it is not channeled correctly by the players, instead of being a motivating factor, it could have a paralyzing effect. That is where Coelho must play his biggest role as mental preparation will be key.

The match against Nigeria was a match where he won out on tactics. This one will have be one where he wins out on motivation and man management. Thankfully for him, despite the youthfulness of the squad he has built, he disposes of players who are used to such high pressure thanks to their club commitments whether past or current.

Furthermore, everyone is saying the right things. In every interview I’ve heard thus far, the boys in red and white have all been unanimous that this next match will be more difficult than the one in Abuja. Whether that is the case or not is not our concern, the good thing is that they all seem to believe it and are bracing themselves for a tough match versus a respectable opponent. In addition, as has been mentioned before on here, the next match is always your toughest match. That’s a winner’s attitude.

Nevermind the fact that Football Kenya Limited is embroiled in a corruption scandal, that arguably the best player on the team (Parma’s McDonald Mariga) will miss out through injury, or that Antoine Hey has bizarrely overlooked top scorer Dennis Oliech. The bottom line is that on Sunday there will be eleven proud Kenyans facing us and you can bet your bottom dollar (or dinar of course, ha) that they aren’t going to do us any favors. Nor would we want them to.

The Harambee Stars have other weapons (Allan Wanga of Petro Atletico, Czech Republic based Patrick Oboya and others). If you want to know more about their situation I touched on it in the Goal.com preview I wrote.

Meanwhile, there are definitely decisions to be as far as our lineups goes. Let’s take a look at the sectors one by one.

Goalkeeper: Easy choice I think, if we follow the logic of competitiveness like we have been thus far for the most part then Aymen Mathlouthi will start because Kasraoui hasn’t played a match for Lens and Ben Mustapha is on his first call-up.

Defense: With our captain Karim Haggui suspended due to yellow card accumulation who will go in his place? Ammar Jemal or Radhouane Felhi have both been used out of position thus far and could get the nod but one option that is being overlooked is Khaled Souissi. Lest we forget that it is his natural position after all…

So basically that decision will hinge on whether Sofian Chahed will get his first start. I think its somewhat unlikely given how new he is to the team but it would definitely be audacious and he is a lot more comfortable on that side than Khaled is. On the left its Yassine Mikari for sure, we’re going to need his marauding runs up that flank against a densely packed Kenyan unit.

Midfield: A plethora of options here. So many that I don’t think I could go into the many combinations of players we could use in a variety of ways. However, my take is we’ll stick to the three defensive midfielders and then put more offensively minded players in later if we struggle to break Hey’s team down. Let’s not forget that we’ll still need enforcers and players who are good at getting back into position when they lose the ball against Kenya because they will almost certainly be employing a counter attacking gameplan.

So, with that in mind, I think the Taider-Ragued-Korbi partnership will remain. With Darragi, Belaid, or Ben Khalfallah on the right side up ahead of those three and Ben Saada on the left. The right side is a toss up if you consider Belaid’s form and that Ben Khalfallah gave the Kenyan defense fits in Nairobi.

However, in my estimation, I think we stick with Darragi both for continuity’s sake and as compensation for that wonder goal in Abuja. Plus it would make the majority of the fans happier than an alternative would. If we employ only two defensive midfielders it gives us the option of putting him behind the attackers and letting him run the show with either Tijani or FBK to his right. I wouldn’t be against that but it’s hard to guess this one so I’ll refrain from doing so. I would personally love to see Dhaouadi get some minutes as well.

Attack: A lot easier to guess what’s going to happen here I think and I’d be very surprised if Issam Jemaa loses his place. It’s possible we use two strikers this time around but then that would affect midfield and I’m not getting into those permutations… If we follow the assumption there will only be one attacker then Jemaa will be there as he has been throughout these qualifiers when he has been healthy and fit.

We’ll definitely get to see Lassad Nouioui in the match eventually too but I think starting him is a lot of pressure for someone who barely played an international match with us. Better to put him into the match later when he can settle in easily (if we’re winning) or we desperately need a goal (if we’re tied or god forbid… trailing). Ali Zitouni is another option but barring an injury to our two other strikers it’s hard to imagine Coelho will start using him as a first option now.

So there you have it, we’re two steps away from our dream but must not look too far ahead of us. The next match requires all our attention and we must all help in any way we can. That includes you. If you’re in Tunisia and you can attend then please go cheer our boys on and represent those of us who cannot. There’s nothing left to say except good luck to our Eagles and to you I say enjoy the match and Forza Tounes!!!

PS: Photos of training and interviews can be found here.

TN WCB On Facebook: Most of you already know this but we have a page for the blog on FB. We’ve grown to 94 members! Help us get to and past that 100 mark by joining if you haven’t. If you have then please suggest it to your friends via the utility on the page (under the photo). The site has been growing in popularity and I have you to thank for it. So, as always, thanks for reading and offering your valuable insights. Keep them coming!

Video Update

Something to get you warmed up! Special thanks to Wissam11 from Tunisie-Foot.com for posting. Download it here.

Keep in mind that any Esperance players on the list won’t take part in the second fixture as they’ll have a UNAF Cup to play for and will be excused from national team duty.

Goalkeepers: Aymen Mathlouthi, Hamdi Kasraoui, Farrouk Ben Mustapha

Defenders: Aymen Abdennour, Sofiene Chahed, Zied Derbali, Radhouene Felhi, Seif Ghezal, Karim Haggui, Ammar Jemal, Yassine Mikari, Khaled Souissi

Midfielders: Tijani Belaid, Fahid Ben Khalfallah, Chaouki Ben Saada, Ousemma Darragi, Zouheir Dhaouadi, Khaled Korbi, Haythem Mrabet, Houcine Ragued, Jamel Saihi, Nabil Taider

Strikers: Issam Jemaa, Lassad Nouioui, Ali Zitouni

As for the list itself, it’s not devoid of surprises. The most notable absences are that of Amine Chermiti and Alaeddine Yahia who were both rumored to be on it. There are still no interviews from the press conference published yet so it is hard to know why he overlooked both of them, especially Chermiti who got his first goal in Asian Champions League yesterday… I’ll update the post with any more info when it becomes available.

Meanwhile, CAB get their just reward for a fine start to the Tunisian league season as they have a representative for the first time in a long time in Farrouk Ben Mustapha. Esperance’s Zied Derbali also gets his first callup. He’s likely in the squad because Haggui is suspended for this game (according to Mosaique FM). That just means Derbali is taking his roster place, not his starting place… Karim is still called up because he’s our captain and plays an important role off the field, also he’ll probably play against Saudi Arabia.

Two rumors that did turn out to be true were the returns of Lassad Nouioui and Jamel Saihi to the Carthage Eagle setup. The Depo striker still hasn’t hit full stride in La Liga but already has a goal to his name despite this and that is the kind of realism we’re going to need against Kenya where chances will be at a premium since they are likely going to pack it in and aim for a draw. Plus its finally an opportunity for the Marseille born forward to get some real time on the pitch in a Tunisia jersey without the hamstring problem holding him back.

As for Saihi, he just came back from a long time off where he was struggling with a severe ankle sprain but his last match at Montpellier must have been enough for Coelho to judge that the kid is ready to go. Few will forget his fantastic goal against Holland. The question will now be whether or not he will start in either match and if so then at who’s expense? Some real decisions to make in defensive midfield…

Sami Allagui, Chady Hammami, and Bilel Ifa are all out of the squad but for different reasons. The first two were replaced by players who are arguably more talented (Nouioui and Saihi) but the latter is injured. Ifa needs rest pure and simple. He’s hardly gotten any vacation in about 3 years and the patella tendon in one of his knees doesn’t seem to like that. Hopefully Club Africain don’t rush him back…

I’m pleased to see Zouheir Dhaouadi keep his place after the positive effect he had in the little time he was on the field in Abuja. Same goes for Haythem Mrabet. Those guys earned their spots by contributing in such a tough game. Finally, I had doubts about Ben Saada since he missed his last game for Nice but the injury must not be so severe if Coelho included him. Belaid is back too after some good performances for Slavia.

Before you freak out about our coach only calling up three true strikers, just remember that for our last match against Nigeria (which was the best one we’ve played under Coelho since he arrived), we did the same thing.

One can argue Kenya and Saudi Arabia are no Super Eagles but we’re staying faithful to our tendencies. It’s working thus far so I can’t have too many complaints. Only one I can really think of is why no Chermiti? I’ll wait for Humberto to explain that one himself…

I definitely commend our FA and Coelho for turning down UAE and Qatar. No disrespect to them but we need a better measuring stick prior to our Mozambique matchup. Angola would have been a logical choice given that they’re also a Portuguese speaking nation and have some similarities with the Mambas but if you’ve been paying any attention to them recently then you know they’re currently a shadow of their former selves:

The Palancas Negras tied Senegal 1-1 in a match where Manuel Jose said they “were embarrassed” (their goal was scored by a Senegalese defender) and then followed that up with a 1-1 tie versus Cape Verde. I have no doubt they’ll get better with time but at this point they wouldn’t be the best team to face. Same goes with Guinea who continue to be a very poor defensive unit. I haven’t been keeping up with Libya since Faouzi Benzarti stopped coaching them but playing them would remind me too much of the Lemerre era I think. Libyan players are usually very skillful but physically and tactically they have a ways to go…

Saudi Arabia were recently dropped out of World Cup qualifying in heartbreaking fashion by Bahrain and will be looking to put that result behind them. They’ve made great strides since being crushed 8-0 by Germany years ago and if you need any proof you can check out our match against them in 2006 where we were overconfident and ended up tying them.

Meanwhile, Kenya’s coach, Antoine Hey recently made an announcement that the Haramabee Stars will be aiming for a tie when we play them in Rades. Now there are rumors he’s left the team completely but these are yet to be confirmed. In any case, this is a reminder that we shouldn’t only be focused on Mozambique and dismissing Kenya. In fact, we often play better on the road than we do at home so hopefully this is a chance for us to reverse that tendency and just play our game no matter where the match is set. There’s no room for error.

Speaking of the Kenya match, its very likely that it will be pushed back a day. That means it will be played on October 11th, not October 10th. The new date coincides with the Nigeria and Mozambique’s matchup. Not sure if they’ll kick off at the same time though… The Kenyan Federation have already accepted the proposition but, as usual, FIFA will have the final say. Our training camp for that encounter will begin on October 5th and will once again be in Sousse.

Chikhaoui Update

The lack of news regarding our national treasure has been downright upsetting to all of us who know his incredible potential and can’t wait to see him play for both club and country. Yassine’s unwillingness to give interviews or statements to journalists desperately wanting some kind of insight on his health status hasn’t helped matters. However, his coach, Bernard Challandes, has been more forthcoming and spoke to Jawahara FM today. Here’s what he had to say:

“For the moment he’s working really hard with us, he’s in a rehabilitation phase. He still needs some more time, he still feels some pain but we’re hoping that things will be better in a few weeks. It’s still not ok, he’s had two operations and still need to rehab. He’s working really hard and is very serious and we hope that things will go better for him.”

“I don’t think there are any miracles, after the operations he went through, he needs time and a lot of work which he is doing right now. We’re hoping we can recuperate him to play with the team. For the moment he’s doing individual training that goes along with the rehabilitation phase after such an operation but hopefully in this end of the year he’ll be better.”

Not sure what to make of that. It sounds like more of the same and the fact that he still has pain in his knee is worrying to me. I thought the operations were meant to get rid of that but maybe I’m confused. So it’s an update but not a very conclusive one. Nevertheless, it comforting to hear something instead of constant silence. The less we hear, the more we speculate and that’s not a fun pass time when we’re talking about such a talented player who’s career is on the line…

So let’s stay patient and just wish Yassine Chikhaoui all the best in this difficult time of recovery. In the meantime, let’s also stay fully behind our national team and hope they continue to improve and amass the results we need to qualify for next summer’s football showpiece!

Unrelated But Hilarious

I just came across this picture after it being lost in the vaults for a while. I had completely forgotten about it and I think I’ve shared it before but figured I’d just post it again for anyone who needs a chuckle today. Quiz: Where was it taken? It’s not a difficult question but I wonder who’ll be the first to answer…

Make no doubt about it, today we witnessed something special. Something we will remember for a long time. A reference for this generation of players and supporters. This is the Tunisia you tell your kids about.

I honestly don’t think that’s an exaggeration. We played a heroic match against a strong opponent and overcame some tremendous obstacles on our way to achieving a result that has positioned us well for a much desired place in next summer’s World Cup.

Above all else what impressed all Tunisians was the heart and the never say die attitude of our players who managed to respond from two massive setbacks in the most composed way possible.

Truth be told, this match could have easily ended in a win for us if we had been a little bit more efficient with our scoring chances. That’s not a complaint, just a fact. We had more than one opportunity to put this thing away but that’s also what ultimately made our comeback even sweeter and more meaningful.

On the whole of the match, it would have been incredibly cruel for us to leave Abuja tonight without having anything to show for our efforts but it really did come incredibly close to being the case.

So much about today’s match could have gone awry for us if the player’s hadn’t exhibited a great deal of maturity, mental strength, and tactical application. Not only did they cope with their adversaries well but they also behaved like true professionals when facing adversity.

Unlike the reverse fixture which ended goalless and was bereft of clear cut scoring chances, this game was end to end stuff that will have surely pleased any neutrals who happened to be watching.

The Players

Aymen Mathlouthi: Prior to the match, there were quite a few people that were unsure about this decision but that is really more of a credit to Kasraoui and a testament to his improvement than it is a slight against our number one today.

Coelho made the change given that Mathlouthi has been getting more games with Etoile than Kasraoui has with Lens which is a completely legitimate reason. Mathlouthi repaid the faith put in him by controlling practically every aerial threat he faced and making a crucial save (Eneramo’s shot from distance after he had given Nigeria the 2-1 lead).

I don’t think he bears responsibility on either of the goals we conceded. One was a close range blast into the roof of the net and the other was from an even closer distance. Of the two, I think he would’ve done well to at least get a reflex save on the second one because it really didn’t go far from his arm but we’re splitting hairs at this point.

Khaled Souissi: One of the players at fault for the second goal but ultimately gets respect for putting in a very solid performance guarding one of Africa’s best left backs. Even managed to get up the field a few times which was hardly the case in Tunis. It’s still not his position but he’s getting better at it with every outing. Eventually we’ll need a real right back though to make us a viable threat down that side.

Had a bit of a scare when I saw him laying on the pitch without any opponent having touched him. I wonder if he played while still fasting. I doubt it but it definitely looked like exhaustion rather than an injury. Props to him for soldiering on regardless.

Karim Haggui: Impeccable stuff from our captain. Those steady minutes he’s getting at Hannover make a world of difference. Made some really important tackles including a clearnace on Uche in the 39th minute to keep things at 1-1 when the Zaragoza player had no one but Mathlouthi in front of him. Also, gave the initial pass to Dhaouadi on the last play that eventually lead to the goal, smart clean play instead of a hopeless ball up field that he could’ve easily resorted to at that point.

Seif Ghezal: Got smoked by Odemwingie on that first goal along after the Nigerian blew past Khaled Korbi but didn’t let that affect the rest of his performance which was stellar. Didn’t get the goal I had the feeling he would in this one but the fact that he played an important part in ensuring we didn’t concede any more than we did is commendable.

Yassine Mikari: Fantastic match by the Sochaux starlet. From start to finish he was causing trouble on that left flank. The only time I found myself upset with him was when he made that errant cross with the clock winding down when we were trying to come back from 2-1 down.

His marauding runs are a big reason why we didn’t have to defend constantly and also were an indication to our hosts that we weren’t going to be satisfied with letting them take the initiative. Was forced to pay for his skillful plays a few times as he was tackled hard but to his credit he got back up each time and went at the Nigerian defense with the same resoluteness. Great nutmeg on Uche too.

Houcine Ragued: Lots of doubts surrounding his participation prior to the match but he ended up taking part nevertheless. Worked tirelessly in midfield and ensured that our opponents didn’t have as much time on the ball in dangerous areas as they would have liked. Came close to making a monumental mistake in the 55th minute when his poor control led to a Nigeria interception which could have ended with Uche scoring. If you take into consideration that he was just coming back from an ankle sprain and barely passed fit, he still did his job admirably.

Khaled Korbi: Missed a tackle on Odemwingie on the first goal but brought that aggressiveness and vivacity that was key to our high press which worked almost to perfection for the majority of the encounter. We were visibly less solid in that domain when he came off injured. It didn’t look pretty either, I hope there’s nothing serious with his knee. I’ve really grown to appreciate what this player brings to the table.

Nabil Taider: Though deployed as a defensive midfielder he really contributed a great deal to our attacks with good passing and movement. Nothing he did in the match could overshadow the thunderbolt he released from his left foot immediately after the Super Eagles had opened the scoring.

He didn’t even give any Nigerians time to celebrate and enjoy their goal properly. As fine a long distance strike you’ll see in these qualifiers, Africa and beyond. And all this in his first competitive outing in Tunisian colors (which suit him so well). Added a nice kiss of the crest for good measure, that’s the way to introduce yourself to your country! The FIFA rule change on switching national team allegiances sure is convenient eh?

Chaouki Ben Saada: Didn’t reproduce the astounding displays he’s had with Nice recently but still was classy and had a nice dribble move during which he displayed his newly developed strength. He worked hard during the offseason to improve that aspect of his game and its great to see it paying off for him.

Ironically the time away from the team due to his problems with Coelho after missing the Ghana encounter may have afforded him to spend more time bolstering his physique. That’s just conjecture but its funny how things workout sometimes. Made things harder on Jemaa at one point with a badly dosed pass on a wasted breakaway but gets credit for trying to make the right decision on the play.

Ousemma Darragi: Looked a little out of his element at times on the right side since he’s so used to running things in the middle and being allowed to roam wherever he wants but fulfilled his role well even though we know he’s capable of doing much better in that sense. Still, he had a part in the first goal we scored, he received a pass, beat one defender gave the ball to Jemaa who laid it off to an unforgiving Taider. Had some fine solo runs too where he showcased that ball control but really should’ve passed to a wide open Ben Saada in the 65th minute when he whiffed badly after deciding to go it alone from far out.

Lest we forget, the man they nickname Picasso provided the moment of the match with his 90th minute finish from a nearly impossible angle. Another player would have shot that or passed it as soon as it came to him but not this guy. He didn’t even touch it until he decided what he was going to do, as if he knew full well that an opportunity such as that one was not going to fall to him again. He steadied himself, took his time and dispatched what could be the goal that qualifies us in the most cold blooded and ruthless fashion. Simply magnificent.

Issam Jemaa: Say what you will about his misses, his presence is the reason we were even able to execute our gameplan, period. He gave us that attacking depth that we were sorely lacking in Tunis and worked his ass off in all facets of play as usual. I’m not saying I didn’t plead with him to be more accurate with his numerous looks at goal but any striker can have such a match.

So glad we finally figured out that he’s a center forward and not a winger or else he’d still be driving me crazy like he used to. Defenders really hate playing against the guy and you can see why, his motor makes him a hassle and he’s constantly moving to lead our high press or to get in behind defenders when we have the ball.

Substitutes:

Haythem Mrabet: Came in at a difficult time and his inexperience on the international stage showed initially. He looked a little out of place and unsure of his responsibilities at first but eventually settled into the match nicely. Did well to attempt an audacious chip pass to Darragi at that game defining moment. Many players wouldn’t have taken that risk but his decision paid off in a very precious goal. A big confidence boost for this player who we might have to rely on more if Korbi’s injury is bad, which we all hope its not inshallah.

Radhouane Felhi: I thought that taking Taider out was a little curious to be honest. And bringing him off for someone who isn’t even a defensive midfielder was even weirder. I know we’ve experiment with Felhi in that role before but I’d rather have seen Hammami instead because he brings more with the ball at his feet than the former Etoile center back does. Can’t judge the Bundesliga 2 representative very easily since he didn’t see much of the ball.

Zouheir Dhaouadi: The kid’s so fast that we didn’t even see him get substituted in! Seriously how did the cameras not catch that? I guess its because it came right after Eneramo’s goal but still. One second it was Ben Saada on the field and the next its Zou right in his place doing his thing. Gave the initial last minute pass to Mrabet that eventually landed at Darragi’s feet and celebrated in fine fashion too (rewatch that if you didn’t notice).

Coaching

What a difference between Coelho and Amodu’s expressions throughout. Besides for the Felhi substitution I really don’t think he put a foot wrong. Of course its easier to say that from our vantage point. I’m sure he had his reasons. In any case, the work him and Mejri put into the Sousse training camp showed. He stressed faster transitions and that’s exactly what we saw. You can’t ask for much more than that if you consider the very limited amount of time he had on his hands.

Also, a special salute to Coelho for realizing that Mikari just had to play. That’s the difference between him and a Lemerre who is blinded by his unyielding faith in a destructive approach to the game. Coelho learned from the mistakes he made in Rades and wasn’t going to repeat them. Not to be overlooked was his consistent encouragement even when we were missing chances and especially when we went down for a second time. He kept believing and eventually we were treated to his touching and truly genuine celebration that has endeared him to any of our countrymen who still weren’t completely sold on the Portuguese manager.

Final Thoughts

There’s definitely room for improvement and it begins with us believing in our own ability of playing attacking football from start to finish. For too long we’ve been pigeon holed into this identity of a defensively solid team. We all saw today what a well balanced team is (for the majority of the encounter), that’s what we’re going to need to win our next two games and we must not let our guard down.

The key for Coelho is to carry this momentum forward and to build on this gutsy performance. Our players showed a level headed-ness beyond their years by refusing to stop playing football when others would have lost hope. There’s two matches left and plenty of positives to take away from this result but we all hope the best is yet to come from this side. Kenya and Mozambique aren’t just gonna lie down for us. With this team though I have every confidence that we will do everything we need to in order to give ourselves the best chance of fulfilling our goal. That’s not something we used to be able to say not so long ago…

Post Match Coverage & Analysis: Belmakchouf’s look at the game here.

Player Reactions here.

Photos and Audio here.

Standings here.

Download the match here (Chawali commentary).

Highlights

Tunisian Goals

Below is an embedded look but if you’re in Tunisia and can’t access dailymotion check here for Taider’s and here for Darragi’s.

Nabil Taider

Ousemma Darragi

We’ve come a long way from when the groups were first announced and now we’re halfway through the qualifiers. As things stand, after three out of six matches we’re leading our group with seven points, two points better than our West African rivals who have five of their own.

We witnessed our side make a valiant comeback and secure a crucial result in Nairobi to win 2-1, saw them do the bare minimum against Mozambique at home to earn a 2-0 victory before they wasted a great chance to take a solid grip on the ticket to South Africa letting Nigeria off the hook at Rades Stadium.

Now we’ve set ourselves up for 90 minutes which could very well define our future. While a loss would not mathematically rule us out, it will definitely reduce our chances significantly as we have a match against Kenya at home before traveling to Maputo for our final one against Mozambique (that one is going to be very tough). A win would give us a huge boost and make us undeniable favorites and a draw would preserve the current status quo and keep us in the lead but without much breathing room.

The most important thing for us will be to put absolutely everything we have into this match and not leave anything on the pitch. Given the heart and unity we’ve put on display in the past year (coming back from 2-0 down against Cameroon in the ACN or beating Kenya in Nairobi when it seemed we could falter after the equalizer), I’m not at all concerned about the level of effort we will display. All we can ask is they give it their all and I’m sure they will.

From a psychological standpoint, you barely have to motivate the players for this kind of match. In fact, in these situations a coach will likely have to defuse tension and stress that the players will be feeling because each of them knows that a World Cup place is essentially there for the taking. It’s a delicate task but I am confident Coelho can do this.

Besides that, there are many factors that actually point in our favor. I’m not going to dwell on history too much but this will help put some things in perspective. In our head to head match-ups: Wins: 6 for us, 4 for them. Draws: 6 each. Goals: 21 for us, 13 for them (courtesy of FIFA).

Meanwhile, out of the 16 times we’ve played each other since 1961, 7 have been World Cup qualifiers and we have a slight edge there as well: 3 wins for us, 2 wins for them, and 2 draws (courtesy of This Day newspaper, that plagiarized one of my articles… Paraphrasing is a lost art I guess)

In any case, the numbers are numbers and won’t have an impact on Sunday’s match but they are a useful reminder to some with short memories that we are one of Africa’s best sides and should not be taken lightly!

Amodu and so many others seem to forget that or perhaps they just prefer to do so… Not that different from what the coach was saying when the groups were announced but here we are in first place and with destiny still in our hands. His job is on the line though so I guess that somewhat explains it…

Furthermore, we don’t need to prove that we know how to get the results we need away from home. Recent must not lose matches like those in Bujumbura and Ouagadougou are just a few recent examples… One of Nigeria’s former players Emeka Ezeugo gets the picture.

With all that said however, we must not make the mistake of relying on history for comfort and let it distract us from what we’re facing. Make no doubt about it, our players are about to go into one of the most difficult matchups they’ve experienced in their football careers. Nigeria boasts a stellar record at home and the circumstances of the match (some players possibly observing the fast for Ramadan, student protests, crowd pressure on the referee, and a determined opponent desperate not to miss out on their second World Cup in a row) are going to make it a very unique occasion.

The Squads

Nigeria

Goalkeepers: Austin Ejide (Bastia), Vincent Enyeama (Hapoel Tel Aviv/), Dele Aiyenugba (Bnei-Yehuda)

Defenders: Onyekachi Apam (Nice), Elderson Echiejile (Rennes), Adefemi Olubayo (Boulogne), Taye Taiwo (Olympique Marseille) Joseph Yobo (Everton),Dele Adeleye (Sparta Rotterdam), Oluwafemi Ajilore (Groningen), Obinna Nwaneri (FC Sion)

Midfielders: John Mikel Obi (Chelsea), Sani Kaita (Rubin Kazan),Yusuf Ayila (Dynamo Kiev),Seyi Olofinjana (Hull City), Kalu Uche (Almeria)

Strikers: Nwankwo Kanu (Portsmouth),Chinedu Ogbuke (Hoffenheim) Osaze Odemwingie (Locomotiv Moscow), Obinna Nsofor (Malaga), Michael Eneramo (Esperance), Ikechukwu Uche (Real Zaragoza), John Utaka (Portsmouth)

Tunisia

Goalkeepers: Hamdi Kasraoui (Lens), Aymen Mathlouthi (Etoile), Jacem Khaloufi (Sfaxien)

Defenders: Aymen Abdennour (Etoile), Sofian Chahed (Hannover), Radhouane Felhi (1860 Munich), Saif Ghzel (Young Boys), Karim Hagui (Hannover), Bilel El-Ifa (CA), Ammar Jemal (Etoile), Khaled Soussi (CA), Yassine Mikari (Sochaux)

Midfielders: Fahid Ben Khalfallah (Valenciennes), Chaouki Ben Saada (Nice), Oussema Darragi (Esperance), Zouhaier Dhaouadi (CA), Chedy Hammami (Sfaxien), Khaled Korbi (Esperance), Haythem Mrabet (Sfaxien), Nabil Taider (Xanthi), Houcine Ragued (Slavia Prague)

Strikers: Sami Allagui (Greuther Furth), Issam Jemâa (Lens), Ali Zitouni (Anatalyaspor)

Match Time: 5:00 PM Tunis Time

Photos: Training pics from Jawhara FM can be seen here.

Audio: Listen to the players thoughts here.

Training Program: Check out our schedule prior to the match. Everyone is in Sousse now. Ragued was the last one to arrive today.

Outlook

With the players we have at our disposal, it is clear that we have every chance of earning a positive result.

Sure Chikhaoui, Mouihbi, and Chermiti (among others) aren’t present but this crop just held Ivory Coast to a draw in Sousse and have shown themselves capable of executing Coelho’s gameplans and have been successful in doing so for the most part.

Don’t expect the same match that we saw here in Tunis. Nigeria came for the draw that day and we were unable to break them down but in Abuja they will be forced to attack. After all, they really have no choice in the matter. To score and appease their fans they will have to push forward a lot more than they did at Rades Stadium and will ultimately leave space for us to exploit one way or another.

This doesn’t mean we want to sit back and wait for them. Our defense may be one of our strengths but our backline can’t handle 90 minutes of pressure that can be avoided. Letting the Super Eagles play is a recipe for disaster because it will fill them with confidence and give them an offensive rhythm that they can build off of. The key will be to not let Nigerian players have time on the ball in midfield. We just so happen to have exactly the type of players that can accomplish this and its something Coelho has been fine tuning since he took over the team. In Ragued, Korbi, Hammami, Taider, and Mrabet we have players who make a living at providing pressure and making interceptions.

When we have the ball we must look to make quick and smart passes to our creators (Ben Saada, Ben Khalfallah, Darragi and Dhaouadi) and offer each of them options to triangulate our passes and either surprise the Nigerian defense with runs into space or advance and take shots from distance. Our set pieces will also be a threat if our recent performances are any indication.

This match isn’t something to be feared, it’s an opportunity to show we deserve a place at South Africa 2010. It’s all in how you approach the match, if our Carthage Eagles fight tooth and nail and do it with the solidarity and positive attitude we are known for on the pitch then there’s no reason at all we can’t get what we want out of this Abuja showdown. Already I like what I’m hearing from our boys.

Injury Update

Mosaique FM reports Houcine Ragued has an ankle sprain and is doing light solitary training today and should be available for full training on Thursday hopefully as long as his MRI scan reveals nothing serious and his ankle cooperates.

Fahid Ben Khalfallah ruled out due to injury. To say this is a blow is an understatement. Ragued is back in training at least.

I’ll continue to update this post as things progress throughout the week. For now enjoy this video preview that Chikhaoui75 from Tunisie-Foot made. Some sections could use some work and I think “DeathRace” is pushing it but its actually a good dramatic montage. It might even be used by TV7 if it gets edited and arabized in time if what’s being said on the forum is to be believed.

FORZA TOUNES!!!

If you compare it to the list from our last game, you’ll notice that the change actually isn’t as drastic as you imagine it to be (at least in terms of numbers). The nature of the additions are what will leave some scratching their heads. It essentially boils down to the exclusion of Wissem Ben Yahia (totally understandable considering his poor showings, even with his club) and Mohamed Ali Ghariani who clearly wasn’t doing enough on his side of the field to show he can trouble opposing defenses with the ball at his feet. That coupled with the addition of three new faces.

While I believe that the Dhaouadi call-up is merited, I am frustrated by the fact that it didn’t come earlier. The kid has been showing off his blistering pace and fancy footwork since the beginning of the season (really since longer than that…) and no one in the national team setup even gave him the light of day. Now we come before a crucial matchup and incorporate him.

I’m not going to complain about this too much since I think its the right decision considering we’ve shown ourselves to have no difference maker in the last two matches we’ve played and Zouheir can be that player. Although I doubt he starts… He can definitely give us some much needed help on the left wing to balance things out with the right side that has been doing the majority of the offensive work for us. He adds that unpredictability which we so desperately need.

Nevertheless, there are some real risks being taken here. I don’t know enough about Chahed to offer an insightful opinion but simply on the basis that he’s never played with us before that is rather surprising we’re calling him up for a do or die game in West Africa. It’s going to be an interesting trip for him… Not worried about Mrabet in that sense but still wasn’t even considering him as a possibility at all.

One thing I do like about all this is that Coelho has shown a willingness to try something new. You don’t win a match without making a calculated risk. I know a lot of people are just shocked by the fact that he’s still trying out players at this point and hasn’t settled on a lineup. It’s a legitimate beef but I have to say, these people shouldn’t be shocked by this anymore because if they are they haven’t been paying attention. We’ve been doing this for a while…

If this works he’ll be a genius, if it backfires we’ll all wonder what the hell he was thinking. With that said, here are your Carthage Eagles for the September 6th match versus Nigeria:

Goalkeepers: Hamdi Kasraoui, Aymen Mathlouthi, Jacem Khaloufi

Defenders: Aymen Abdennour, Sofian Chahed, Radhouane Felhi, Saif Ghzel, Karim Hagui, Bilel El-Ifa, Ammar Jemal, Khaled Soussi, Yassine Mikari

Midfielders: Fahid Ben Khalfallah, Chaouki Ben Saada, Oussema Darragi, Zouhaier Dhaouadi, Chedy Hammami, Khaled Korbi, Haythem Mrabet, Nabil Taydar, Houcine Ragued

Strikers: Sami Allagui, Issam Jemâa, Ali Zitouni

The new elements in the squad and the ones we didn’t take aren’t the only thing to talk about obviously, it’s just what jumped off the screen when I looked at it. The other thing is the measly amount of strikers. It’s a real shame that neither Lassad nor Chermiti are selectable right now… And don’t get me started on Chikhaoui! Just from the nature of the list our gameplan is clear for everyone to see. The only question that remains about it is how well will it be executed?

Listen to what Coelho had to say here.