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Status Check: Tunisia vs. Cote d’Ivoire Preview

August 10th, 2009 | By: Rami | 39 Comments »

We’re two days away from our August 12th matchup versus Drogba and company and you know what the means: Preview time. Yup, even though things have been unusually quiet on the blog recently there’s still a little thing we call the Tunisian National Team which we all care about quite a bit and it just so happens the fellas are about to face Africa’s top ranked team on Wednesday.

Sure we don’t really take much stock in those FIFA rankings but when it comes to Cote d’Ivoire they are probably on point. You’d be hard pressed to find an African team in better stride than they are right now. They have just come through what was basically the most important match of their qualifying campaign by beating the ever improving (and no longer surprising) Burkina Faso by the score of 3-2 in Ouagadougou. That gives them a perfect record and nine points.

Now as they seek to build off the result and earn passageway to their second successive World Cup by beating the Stallions at home, they must first do battle against us in Sousse… yes Sousse. Isn’t that nice? Finally, the Carthage Eagles are being allowed to venture away from their Rades nest that has seemed more like a cage in recent years. A relatively empty one at that (with some minor exceptions).

Nevertheless, while the change of venue is positive, its not what we ideally wanted. Habib Mejri was quoted a few weeks ago saying that the FTF had originally requested that the match be played in Abidjan only for the Ivorians to refuse. It’s too bad really as that would have been a perfect way to prepare for Abuja’s environment. Oh well, we asked at least!

Rather than switch opponents to someone who would be willing to host us, the Tunisian technical staff decided that facing a team of Cote d’Ivoire’s caliber was more important than where the match would take place… and I’d have to agree with that assessment. You hardly could’ve asked for a better opponent than this. Ghana would have done the trick too I suppose but I’m glad we didn’t wait till the last minute like we have in the past…

Meanwhile, Nigeria aren’t playing anyone. That’s right, they’ve opted against a warmup in order not to disrupt their European based players who are all in training camp and lessen their chances of earning starting places on their club teams. Seems to be flawed logic to me but to each their own…

What this does mean however is that Nigerian coaches will get a chance to dissect our play against Cote d’Ivoire while we’ll only be able to rely on video from previous matches, including the goalless draw in Rades two months ago. It’s something to think about but don’t lose too much sleep over it as I’m sure we won’t put all our cards on the table and even if we do, the way the players execute the gameplan we come up with will be more important than the strategy itself.

So what about this friendly against the Elephants? They’ve had some trouble against North African opponents as evidenced by them consistently coming out second best to Egypt and even our last match against them was a 2-0 win for us. Let it be noted however that one of our goalscorers from that match (Tijani Belaid) was not called up by Coelho.

So instead of trying to predict what will happen, lets take a look at some burning questions based on our roster:

1. Will Yassine Mikari regain his place on the left side of defense? Or will Coelho stick to his defensively robust but offensively inept selection of Ammar Jemal on that side. We all know the Etoile player has skills but are we really going to continue to put players in positions that aren’t theirs and except them to produce?

2. Same goes for Khaled Souissi on the right. He was probably the weakest player against Nigeria and it wasn’t even his fault. He’s just not a right back. Then again, who should go in his place? I’ve been pulling for Bilel Ifa but it seems that a whole year of non stop playing (I think he literally got five days of vacation) have taken their toll on him and he’s not in his best form. Plus, if he was going to get his chance to start, they should have done it as early as Kenya so that he would be super confident by now. Instead, he seems to be just there in case someone else gets injured.

3. Is it worth calling Nabil Taider right now? Frankly I don’t know a great deal about him. Only that we wanted him to be a part of our 2006 squad when he was with Toulouse but FIFA denied the application. I know the doors of the national team are technically open to anyone that can help but is this the right time to be bringing in new faces? It very well could be, but its a question that needs to be asked. I suppose if he plays well and we end up taking him to Nigeria we’ll say yes, and if the opposite happens we’ll say no.

4. Is Coelho capable of deploying Ben Saada, Darragi, and Ben Khalfallah all at the same time for an entire match? His words prior to taking over would indicate yes but his actions since doing so don’t really point in that direction. I’m still especially annoyed he put Belaid into the match against Nigeria and left Ben Khalfallah, who has had a hand in most of our goals during this qualifying run, on the bench.

5. Will these strikers rise to the occasion? No Chermiti, no Lassad, no fun. Jemaa is proven, we all know that. However, Allagui, Ghariani, and Zitouni need to show us more than just glimpses of their talent. This is their chance to show they’re ready to do some damage in Abuja.

In any case, the match is set to be an entertaining one. Sousse during August is popping and one would hope that the combination of people visiting their family and tourists frolicking about will spur people on to go and support our national team.

I’m really more interested in how we’re going to play than the final result. No one would eve turn down a win but honestly it’s not necessary, what we need to see is tangible proof that we have the players at our disposal that will be capable to cement our place in South Africa on September 6th. That’s all I really care about.

What do you think?

There’s a link embedded in the article leading you back to the post I wrote after we played them last but if you just want to relieve the encounter, there’s video below. Worth a watch, brings back some nice memories (Belaid’s goal after coming back from the car crash incident) and the some bad ones (Roger Lemerre being Roger Lemerre).

PS: I might not be able to watch the encounter due to work commitments but if you get your hands on downloadable copy, holla atcha boyee.

Coelho Press Conference Audio: Check it here

Training Photos: Check them here

Reportage Tunisie vs Cote d'ivoire part 2
Uploaded by Artiste-Tunisien.

Tags: August 12th friendly, Carthage Eagles, Group H, Habib Mejri, Humberto Coelho, Ivory Coast Football, Sousse, Tunisian Football

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Comments

Displaying the most recent 25 comments from a total of 39 comments.

Read the rest of the comments

By bassem | August 12th, 2009 at 2:36 am

FFS, at the moment its all about the money, so he’s better of in an Arab country where he can be appricated for his abbilty, rather then sitting there on the bench losing confidance en trust.

So i don’t give a rat’s ass where he go’s, if they can give him a garuentee to play just go. We need him for our national team to be ready for the game against Nigiria and he needs to have game rithem so Coelho can let him play.

Posted from Netherlands

By Feedi | August 12th, 2009 at 3:08 am

I dont see why Herta didnt loan him last year.Maybe to let him see how the Bundesliga is.But still i think that if they loaned him previous year that he would start at herta now.

But better late than never…

Posted from Netherlands

By Feedi | August 12th, 2009 at 5:16 am

For the people who can read dutch:
http://www.voetbalzone.nl/doc.asp?uid=83926

It is officiel now.

Posted from Netherlands

By bassem | August 12th, 2009 at 5:41 am

I’ve read it but Feedi i am realy dissapointed, he has so much potential. I agree with the post comments that he was better of by returing to El Jam Sahli than to Al Ahly.

Realy f.u this!

Posted from Netherlands

By Rami | August 12th, 2009 at 8:28 am

No Drogba or Toure today: http://www.infosfoot.net/fr/articles/article.php?id_article=2323

Still plenty of talent will be on the field though…

Posted from United States

By Rami | August 12th, 2009 at 12:50 pm

Official starting lineup according to Jawhara FM:

—————-Kasraoui—————
Souissi — Hagui — Ghzal — Jmel
—————–Raghed—————-
———Korbi———– Taider ——-
—————–Darragi—————-
BKF ————-Jemaa —————

Nice to see FBK in from the very start with Darragi and Jemaa. Looking forward to checking Taider. And there’s our answer on our right and left backs. Looks like that’s what we’re going to see in Nigeria too… You know my opinion on this. Wonder who Chaouki will come in for. Probably Fahid or Taider.

Posted from United States

By Nabil | August 12th, 2009 at 3:24 pm

Defensive side of our game was quite solid but attack wise…..suffice to much room for improvement.

Ben Sadda and Darragi the only bright spots going forward, damn do we ever miss Chika. We just miss that one player that can create something out of nothing, now Darragi could very well be that player but at the moment just lack tha extra bit of quality to punish quality sides such as CIV and Nigeria.

I’m confident we can go to Abuja and earn a result but would be more confident if we had match winner Chika in the squad.

By Rami | August 12th, 2009 at 4:10 pm

I am in total agreement. Even Ghezal was saying the same thing after the match. You just can’t replace a player like Chikha. Darragi looked a little out of it today. He still did his thing but he just lacking that cutting edge he usually provides for Esperance. I think we can go and get a draw in Abuja but I hope our attack improves so we’re not defending the whole time we’re there. We saw at the end of the game we nearly gave it away stupidly.

Match report coming today or tomorrow at the latest depending on workload tonight.

Posted from United States

By Abdullah | August 12th, 2009 at 5:17 pm

Ben Khalfallah also impressed me i must say, he looked very aggressive and motivated, a shame he had that huge defender in front of him every time

Ben Saada has never disappointed me, and his freekicks still amaze me(even if they dont go in)

Darragi had some trouble falling back and defending apparantly he’s not used to that, but offensively this man is unstoppable, just like Chikha he is able to cause danger out of nothing.

Taider also impressed me with his play he seems confident & we need that, he also has the ability to defend as well as attack.

Souissi played quite good i was impressed by his runs and willingess to go forward but i also noticed he was out of position a lot and Ghezal had to help out(wich he did superbly), but im convinced of the fact that Iffa would do so much better if he’s given the chance to…but for now Souissi will certainly do

Haggui looked confident but i prefer it if he doesnt take much risk next time(i can understand it in a friendly though).

Ragued is a BEAST he was all over the place!

Jemaa is inconsistent, one time he makes a beautifull run,pass or shot and right after he’s horrible in possesion but it seem right now we dont have anyone better for his position.

Korbi played good just like Ragued…the 2 best defensive mids we have

Ghezal has definately earned his spot in central defense.

Jmel played good even if he’s not a lb, but i do think the next time we should start with Mikari.

And once again Kasraoui proves he is still numero uno, although im afraid he wont get the playing time he was used to at EST.

I still am seeeing improvement in the squad and thats what im glad about.

—————- Kasraoui —————
Souissi — Hagui — Ghzal — Mikari
—————– Raghed —————-
———Korbi———– Taider ——-
—————–Darragi—————-
BKF ————-Jemaa —————

Posted from Netherlands

By Alex | August 12th, 2009 at 7:55 pm

You’ve gone straight from pre-match discussions to post-match discussions. What actually happened?

Posted from Australia

By Abdullah | August 12th, 2009 at 8:15 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK2UoDReIs0&e&fmt=18 vid i made just now with the highlights posted by team-tunisie.net

Posted from Netherlands

By Rami | August 12th, 2009 at 8:20 pm

Thanks Abdullah. Skander, I’ll write up a match report either later tonight or tomorrow at the very latest. Sorry bud, had a lot going on this afternoon and still got more goal.com articles to write tonight.

Posted from United States

By Rami | August 12th, 2009 at 8:30 pm

For now those who speak french can check this: http://www.infosfoot.net/fr/articles/article.php?id_article=2325

Posted from United States

By Rachid | August 12th, 2009 at 9:19 pm

A very boring game that showed we have no more than a mediocre team at the present time. There is no comparison whatsoever between Darraji and Chikhaoui, at least not quite yet. Let’s not get ahead and fool ourselves! The team is lacking a play maker that can make things happen; I see no solutions despite the repeated trials of bringing in new names after each “shopping” trip in Europe. We’re few weeks from a very decisive game, and I’m concerned we’re totally screwed. As I said previously, when we tied Nigeria in Rades, we set ourselves up for a major heartbreaking experience. I hope I’m wrong!!!

By moni | August 12th, 2009 at 11:25 pm

Bring in Benachour, thats the playmaker !!!!! and use ben saada as a no 11 ore 9

Posted from Netherlands

By Alex | August 12th, 2009 at 11:27 pm

Was Darraji stressed or was he really out of his depth this time

Posted from Australia

By Rami | August 13th, 2009 at 12:27 am

He wasn’t out of his depth. He put a nice move on two Ivorian defenders (its in the highlights) and has had ensuing shot saved. He just wasn’t his usual flashy self. Just one of those days when things don’t click or smthn. He put in effort but he didn’t have that same influence he had against Kenya (late in the game), Sudan, Mozambique (when he came on), and Nigeria. A lot of it has to do with the solidity of the Ivorian defense. Even without Kolo they weren’t messing around. He didn’t look stressed either, just an average match from a player we all know isn’t average. He didn’t see as much of the ball as he usually does too…

Best performers were FBK, Haggui, Ragued (beast as Abdullah described him), and Ben Saada in my opinion. Even Kasraoui got in on the action and had some good stops. I could go on but I’ll save some for my actual report.

Rachid, I think you’re being too pessimistic. This is why we played a friendly against the top ranked (and arguably most talented) side in Africa. We’re not going to dominate from start to finish but if you look at some sequences in the match you can tell that something is being built here. Just think back to the latter years of Lemerre’s era and you’ll see that we’ve come a long way already. We could’ve won this match just as easily as we could have lost it. There are lessons in it and I think it really served its purpose. I’d rather us make some mistakes now and learn then put on a big display and go in overconfident against Nigeria.

It’s official, full match report coming tomorrow. I need to sleep.

Posted from United States

By Alex | August 13th, 2009 at 12:58 am

BTW Thx Abdullah for the video.

Posted from Australia

By bassem | August 13th, 2009 at 3:00 am

I realy found it a nice game to watch, i made a deal with my self, when its going to be boring i’ll zap towards the Netherlands – England game. But i watched the hole game and found both teams nice to watch. There was a good speed and a nice passing game to see from both, don’t forget that you watched a friendly game, with players that have a message from there club to return safe with out injurys. So players needed to watch out and not give to full percentage of there abilty.

They need to create more chances up front and shoot more from long range. I saw some good shots at goal with lots of power in them.
Two things i didn’t like that was the head colision of Ben Saada and later on the red card what was obvius a red one.

Further you saw a lake of speed by Jemaa, thats why i prefer Yassin or Aimen up front with Daraggi. What can i say more, nice friendly awaiting Nigeria, 1 point will be enough over there to maintain the 2 point advantage.

Posted from Netherlands

By Fahd | August 13th, 2009 at 3:52 am

Hi all,

Long no hear from me :0)

yesterday’s game was horrible, Tunisia played horrendous. Pff so defensive no flair no attack no nothing. Just a couple of guys that run around to catch the ball. There is no attacking flavour, Fahd was horrible I now understand that he plays for Valence (france) he does not have anything to add to the team he showed that several times.

Darragi was ok, but clearly he got instructions from tarajji to be carefull and not give it all. I was surprised by Korbi, despite he is from Tarajji :0) I like his power aggressive football.

I truly believe that if we had a friendly between Tunisia export and Tunisia Local players we would have seen that there is no difference in strength and that the local players would have won the game!!

Overall the game was friendly and players did not give it all, however I still do not see a Strong Tunisian team that will make it to the world cup and pass through the second round of the group phases. Allahou A3lem.

Well time will tell. By the way Chermiti will be back Saudia Arabia will bring him back Alive. He will play and succeed and then come back to europe. I mean he has a lot of Haters since his move to berlin, but he was not lucky. Similar to chikhaoui I hope inshallah both will be fit in ime to help the Tunisian squad.

Aan de Tunesische Nederlanders wie is een fan van Elnejma??

groeten,

By Feedi | August 13th, 2009 at 4:24 am

Ik ben een fan van Nejma.

The game was boring,next time i hope taider doesnt play and ben saada plays.Jmel dont be a lb but mikari.With Chikhaoui and Chermiti in the squad the the Cartage Eagles are ready for the World Cup.
I still dont now who is the best attacker.I know that Lassad must to prove himself at in the cartage eagles.He is not ready for a startiing place.
——-Kasraoui——-
Soussi-Haggui–Ghezel–Mikari
——-Ragued—Korbi—-
————————-
FBK—–Darragi–Ben Saada
—Chermiti/Allagui/Jemaa/Zitouni—-

Posted from Netherlands

By bassem | August 13th, 2009 at 4:33 am

Najma? Najma fel Terma !!! CLUBIST 100%

You know whats boring? Don’t let me say it please, your club fans not country fans, you can’t even make the difference between a friendly and a qualifing game. You can’t give all your secrets away during a friendly, you don’t think Nigeria was watching? Man o Man. No hard feelings Feedi en Fahd but i am sorry to hear that you are Najma squad My favorite player is Chermiti so realy no hard feelings. But where better!!;-)

Posted from Netherlands

By Feedi | August 13th, 2009 at 7:09 am

I watch the games of the tunisian ligue sometimes,not so often.But i know that:
Etoile has the best defence of Tunisia.
The best goalkeeper of tunisian ligeu.
Last year ESS scored 48 goals and had 17 against.Ca had 14 against and they scored 25.
ESS can score more goals than CA because our LB and RB are helping our attack.
I dont now who has the best midfield and who has the best attack.I think Tarraji has the best attack.
Ca has big talents.
I some information from Soccerway.

BTW Is there news about Chikhaoui?

Posted from Netherlands

By Fahd | August 13th, 2009 at 10:41 am

He bassem,

Yesterday Swa7lia supported the squad perfectly, much better then they do in Tunis both in sound as in Numbers. Melle inti fan mte3 El Cleb?? Kul wa7id ou hemmou :0)

Anyway no hard feelings we swa7lia love Mouihbi!! :0)

Nigeria Tunisia I hope 2-4
but the reality is 3-1

By the way Chikhaoui is still recovering, It is not going as he would want so…

Wellicht kunnen we een keer tegen elkaar voetballen ESS vs CA in Houlanda ??? Laat het weten Bassem en Feedi!!

By bassem | August 13th, 2009 at 12:34 pm

Tuurlijk geen probleem een keer voetballen met elkaar aangezien het goed weer is, is geen probleem lijkt me leuk. Woon onder de rook van schiphol.

Posted from Netherlands

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