Ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Fantasy campaign, we’re taking a closer look at each nation competing at this summer’s tournament – highlighting their recent form, qualifying matches, key players and more.
Next up are Tunisia, one of Africa’s most experienced World Cup nations.
This summer will be their seventh appearance at the tournament. They have now qualified for three straight World Cups.
Now they head into another World Cup with a new manager, several younger players emerging and plenty to prove.
SQUAD
New manager Sabri Lamouchi, who was appointed in January 2026, officially announced Tunisia’s final World Cup squad on May 15.
THE ROAD TO QUALIFICATION
As we can see, Tunisia enjoyed an exceptional qualifying campaign overall. They won nine of their 10 matches and remained unbeaten throughout. Even more impressively, they kept clean sheets in every single fixture!
Tunisia have faced criticism for their lack of attacking threat in recent years, but scoring 22 goals during qualification was definitely a step in the right direction – even if much of that success came against weaker opposition.
Conceding just one goal during the qualifying round was something only one other team could manage.
As we can see below, when compared to all other African teams involved in the qualifying round, the Eagles of Carthage ranked among the top four for expected goals (xG) conceded per 90 minutes:
As impressive as Tunisia’s campaign was from a defensive perspective, we still have to be careful not to overlook some of the attacking concerns. The north African nation scored one goal or less in half of their qualifying matches and also ranked outside the top six African nations for expected goals (xG).
The underlying data (xG per 90 minutes, below) suggests Tunisia still lack the attacking firepower shown by some of Africa’s other major sides:
Of course, all of the above was done under different stewardship, with Lamouchi only taking charge this calendar year.
BIGGEST GOAL THREATS IN QUALIFICATION
Looking at the data, there was one clear standout in attack for Tunisia.
Hazem Mastouri not only scored twice during qualification, but he also finished as the only Tunisian player to register more than 2.0 xG. Impressively, he managed that despite playing fewer minutes than many of his teammates.
Another player who caught the eye during qualifying was Elias Saad, although he still does not look like a guaranteed starter heading into the tournament. Across just 309 minutes, Saad – who is something of a direct free-kick specialist – produced three goals from only 0.51 xG while also registering six shots on target.
That said, forgive the pun, Saad has struggled to truly convince in the 2. Bundesliga this season. The winger started just eight league matches and failed to score a single goal domestically.
MOST CREATIVE PLAYERS IN QUALIFYING
Several Tunisian players stood out creatively during qualification. One of them was full-back Ali Abdi.
Abdi registered three assists and produced an impressive 15 key passes during the campaign. A role on set plays helped him to this total.
Only one Tunisian player played more minutes than him, which highlights just how important he has become for the side.
Veteran Naim Sliti topped the squad for key passes with 18. He also turned three of them into assists. However, his minutes heading into the tournament look far less secure.
The same cannot be said for Hannibal Mejbri. The Burnley midfielder has become a key figure in the Tunisia attack.
Mejbri managed just one assist during qualification, but still produced 17 key passes. Again, he’ll have a big say on set plays.
SINCE QUALIFICATION
AFCON 2025/26
| Date | Opposition | Result | Goalscorers | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 December 2025 | v Uganda | 3-2 (W) | Skhiri, Achouri (x2) | Mejbri, Abdi, |
| 27 December 2025 | v Nigeria | 2-3 (L) | Talbi, Abdi | Mejbri |
| 30 December 2025 | v Tanzania | 1-1 (D) | Gharbi | |
| 3 January 2026 | v Mali | 1-1 (D) | Chaouat | Saad |
Tunisia endured a disappointing AFCON campaign prior to the World Cup, which eventually led to a change in the dugout.
The Eagles of Carthage scored seven goals across their four matches, but failed to keep a single clean sheet throughout the tournament. Very much the opposite of World Cup qualification!
Their round-of-16 exit against Mali only increased the criticism. Despite Mali playing much of the match with 10 men following a red card, Tunisia still looked blunt in attack and eventually crashed out of the competition.
FRIENDLIES
| Date | Opposition | Result | Goalscorers | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 March 2026 | v Haiti | 1-0 (W) | Tounekti | Gharbi |
| 1 April 2026 | v Canada | 0-0 (D) | – | – |
| 1 June 2026 | v Austria | 0-1 (L) | – | – |
| 5 June 2026 | v Belgium | 0-5 (L) | – | – |
There has not been much to shout about since Sabri Lamouchi took charge, either.
Tunisia did keep clean sheets in both of their post-AFCON friendlies, but they scored just once against 10-man Haiti and then failed to find the net against Canada.
Two losses followed in June, the second mitigated by having a man sent off and Lamouchi sending out a weaker side. Still, they also failed to find a way past 10-man Austria despite having a man advantage for an hour.
All is not well in the camp, it seems:
WORLD CUP FIXTURES
While Tunisian players are a hard sell to Fantasy managers, Lamouchi’s troops do at least begin their group campaign with one of their more winnable tests.
Sweden didn’t win a single game during the group stage of qualification and have been erratic since, failing to keep a clean sheet under new boss Graham Potter.
Japan, however, have won their last five friendlies to nil and are unbeaten in seven. The top seeds, Netherlands, await in Round 3.
TOP FANTASY PICKS
Tunisia will still be clinging to hope that they can muster a clean sheet and build from there. As mentioned, the Eagles of Carthage conceded zero goals during World Cup qualifying and also kept back-to-back clean sheets in March.
Full-back Ali Abdi ($4.1m) does not only benefit from clean sheet potential, either. Abdi is also Tunisia’s designated penalty taker, which boosts his appeal significantly.
His creativity during qualification was also impressive, in part due to a share of corners. So even if Tunisia fail to keep a shutout, Abdi still has multiple attacking routes to points.
Investing in the Tunisia attack is almost a no-go due to expected rotation on the wings and up front. That is where Hannibal Mejbri ($4.8m) stands out as the safest option. And a budget-friendly one, too.
We already saw how creative Mejbri was during World Cup qualifying. He then followed that up with two assists during AFCON.
Much of that appeal comes from set pieces. The Burnley midfielder takes both corners and free-kicks for Tunisia.
Having established himself as a regular towards the back-end of qualification, he then started all four AFCON matches in the winter.
