Tunisia vs Equatorial Guinea Match Analysis and Prediction

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Tunisia and Equatorial Guinea kick off their 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign when they meet at the Stade Olympique de Rades in Group J on Thursday.

The Eagles of Carthage, who have not tasted defeat in five successive home matches, head into the contest off the back of claiming a spot in the upcoming World Cup and will aim to keep the form running.

Jalel Kadri’s side were last in action on March 23, when they saw off West African rivals Mali to confirm their qualification for the 2022 World Cup later in the year.

Having secured a 1-0 first-leg victory in Bamako through a first-half own goal by Moussa Sissako, Tunisia put on a defensive masterclass on home soil in the return leg to hold out for a draw and win the tie 1-0 on aggregate.

Before that, the Eagles of Carthage suffered a quarter-final exit from the Africa Cup of Nations back in January, when Dango Ouattra scored on the stroke of half time to hand Burkina Faso a hard-fought victory.

Tunisia head into Thursday’s contest unbeaten in each of their last five matches at home, picking up four wins and one draw since a 2-0 defeat against Algeria in June 2021.

Equatorial Guinea lost 3-1 to Senegal in their most recent game, a result that saw them crash out of the Africa Cup of Nations in the quarter-finals.

Prior to that, Nzalang Nacional finished runners-up in the group stages with six points from three matches in Group E before seeing off Mali on penalty shootouts in the round of 16 on January 26.

Juan Micha’s side head into the contest unbeaten in 11 of their last 15 games since 2019, claiming nine wins and two draws in the process, and will aim to keep this solid run going.

Tunisia vs Equatorial Guinea head to head

The two teams have previously met on seven occasions across all competitions, where Tunisia have claimed four victories while Guinea have won twice, and they have drawn once. Tunisia have scored 11 goals and conceded six. In their last five meetings, Guinea have won two while Tunisia have won three.

Tunisia 1-2(E) Equatorial Guinea 31/01/15

Equatorial Guinea 0-1 Tunisia 19/11/19

Tunisia 2-1 Equatorial Guinea 28/03/21

Tunisia 3-0 Equatorial Guinea 03/09/21

Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Tunisia 13/11/21

Tunisia latest home form

Tunisia have recently failed to keep a good run of form at home, having won just two of their five most recent matches. They drew 0-0 with Mali in their last home game in the World Cup Qualifiers. In their last five matches, they have scored five goals and conceded three.

Tunisia 1-0 Egypt 15/12/21

Tunisia 0-2(E) Algeria 18/12/21

Tunisia 0-1 Mali 12/01/22

Tunisia 4-0 Mauritania 16/01/22

Tunisia 0-0 Mali 29/03/22

Tunisia latest away form

Tunisia have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having won just two of their five most recent matches. They defeated Mali 1-0 in their last away game in the World Cup Qualifiers. In their last five matches, they have scored two goals and conceded four.

Syria 2-0 Tunisia 03/12/21

Gambia 1-0 Tunisia 20/01/22

Nigeria 0-1 Tunisia 23/01/22

Burkina Faso 1-0 Tunisia 29/01/22

Mali 0-1 Tunisia 25/03/22

Equatorial Guinea latest home form

Equatorial Guinea have recently been on a good run of form at home, having lost just one of their seven most recent matches. They drew 0-0 with Angola in their last home game in a friendly match. In their last five matches, they have scored four goals and conceded just one.

Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Mauritania 07/09/21

Equatorial Guinea 2-0 Zambia 07/10/21

Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Tunisia 13/11/21

Equatorial Guinea 0-1 Cote d’Ivoire 12/01/22

Equatorial Guinea 0-0 Angola 29/03/22

Equatorial Guinea latest away form

Equatorial Guinea have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having lost each of their two most recent matches. They lost 3-0 to Guinea-Bissau in their last away game in a friendly match. In their last five matches, they have scored three goals and conceded six.

Algeria 0-1 Equatorial Guinea 16/01/22

Sierra Leone 0-1 Equatorial Guinea 20/01/22

Mali 0-0(P) Equatorial Guinea 26/01/22

Senegal 3-1 Equatorial Guinea 30/01/22

Guinea-Bissau 3-0 Equatorial Guinea 23/03/22

Tunisia news

Tunisia named a 26-man squad for the upcoming qualification matches, including the Esperance de Tunis trio of goalkeeper Mohamed Sedki Debchi, midfielder Ghailene and Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane.

Manchester United’s Hannibal Mejbri, who has 12 international caps under his belt, should start in midfield alongside Ghailene Chaalali and Aissa Laidouni.

Equatorial Guinea news

Micha has named 25 players for their qualifiers, with the likes of Sassuolo’s Pedro Obiang and defender Basilio Ndong headlining the squad.

At the heart of the defence, we are likely to see a centre-back pairing of Miguel Angel Maye and Cosme Anvene shielding Alaves goalkeeper Jesus Owono between the posts.

Prediction and Odds

Having already secured their spot in the World Cup at Qatar, Tunisia head into the contest with high confidence as they seek to get their qualification campaign start positively.

Equatorial Guinea have most recently failed to keep a good run of form, so we are backing the Eagles of Carthage for a win.

Odds: 1 1.82 X 2.00 2 2.32