Soccer
The 1966 FIFA World Cup champions will face Tunisia today, as their first campaign of Russia's edition of FIFA World Cup. Tunisia which is ranked 21 in the FIFA World Ranking will play their first World Cup match since 2006. With world-class players, England might have an upper hand over Tunisia, but as the tournament is advancing, we have witnessed no underdogs exist at the tournament so far.
With an early 3 point lead at the group stage, it will give either of the team a boost up for upcoming group matches. And to advance from the group stage is so vital for any team to keep marching at the tournament.
So, here are few things you might want to know before the kick-off of the first match of Group G.
England will face Tunisia at Volgograd Arena, Volgograd with kick-off time scheduled at 7 PM BST (2 PM EST). The match will be televised live on BBC One and viewers can stream the match online via the BBC iPlayer.
Gareth Southgate will take charge of his first World Cup match today as England face Tunisia. An early three-point lead will give the teams a major boost up for the upcoming group stage matches. So, it will be up to the managers to bring out their best starting 11-man squad for the battle.
Here are the possible starting 11-man squad for England Vs Tunisia.
England
GK: Jordan Pickford
Defenders: Harry Maguire, John Stones, Kyle Walker, Ashley Young, Kieran Trippier
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Dele Alli, Jesse Lingard
Forwards: Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling
Tunisia
GK: Mouez Hassen
Defenders: Dylan Bronn, Yassine Meriah, Syam Ben Youssef, Ali Maaloul
Midfielders: Ferjani Sassi, Ellyes Skhiri, Saif-Eddine Khaoui, Maim Sliti
Forwards: Fakhereedine Ben Youssef, Anice Badri
England has never lost to African nations at the World Cup, with three wins and three draws. While Tunisia has just one clean sheet in last 12 of their World Cup matches. All in all, England is superior to Tunisia at World Cup stats, but looking at the fact that England has not managed to score twice in any of its previous nine World Cup matches. It's possible that the first game of Group G might be a head-to-head clash.
England couldn't pull a show out of the group stage at 2014 FIFA World Cup, losing to Uruguay and Italy before drawing with Costa Rica. Tunisia's stats at the World Cup is even worse, the only victory they managed was in 1978 against Mexico.
England might have to depend on aggressive forward Harry Kane, joined with young talent Raheem Sterling. England also has good options at substitutes; Marcus Rashford. And Tunisia might have to rely on the back line in absence of their star striker Youssef Msakni.
Playerwiki predicts:
England Vs Tunisia: 2-1
England to win: 4/9
Tunisia to win: 17/2
