Mali v Tunisia: Line-ups, stats and preview

Mali v Tunisia Match Preview

Tunisia will look to produce a marked improvement in performance to keep their Africa Cup of Nations hopes alive when they face Mali in the last 16.

The Carthage Eagles progressed to the knockout rounds despite winning just one of their three Group C fixtures, losing to Nigeria and drawing with Tanzania after opening with a 3-1 win over Uganda.

Having only progressed beyond the quarter-finals once since winning the tournament on home soil in 2004, coach Sami Trabelsi knows his side will need to raise their game if they are to have a chance of lifting the trophy.

Speaking after the draw with Tanzania, Trabelsi said: “The most important thing was to secure qualification. We have not done well in this competition in recent years and that is why qualification is so important.

“We may not have played the best way possible, but we are very happy to have qualified. We will be playing against stronger opposition in our upcoming games and will really need to play better because the level of competition will be even higher and requires us to improve.”

Mali qualified as runners-up in Group A after drawing each of their three games, including their clash with hosts Morocco, a result that underlined how difficult they are to beat.

The Eagles are unbeaten in their last six games and have not conceded more than one goal in a game since a 2-1 defeat to Ghana in World Cup qualifying in June 2024, a game in which they conceded a 94th-minute winner.

Mali have now reached the knockouts of the AFCON in each of the last four tournaments, though they haven’t gone beyond the quarter-finals since finishing third in 2013.

Despite that achievement, Mali coach Tom Saintfiet wants more from his players, calling on them to be more clinical in front of goal.

Speaking after they were held to a 0-0 draw by Comoros in their final Group A game, Saintfiet said: “It feels weird honestly, because as coach, you want to win games, you want to do it also for the public, and it is not that we didn’t play well, we scored two goals in three games, one penalty and one in normal play.”

“Everyone talks of how we have a good combination of football, we have to be more efficient in front of goal, and that is something we have to work on before the coming game.”

Team news for Mali v Tunisia

Mali will be without midfielder Amadou Haidara due to suspension after he was sent off late on against Comoros.

Tunisia midfielder Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane could miss out because of a knee injury.

Predicted line-ups for Mali v Tunisia

Mali: Diarra; W. Coulibaly, Diaby, O. Camara, Gassama; Dieng, Doumbia, L. Coulibaly, Sangare, Bissouma; Sinayoko.

Tunisia: Dahmen; Abdi, Talbi, Bronn, Valery; Skhiri, Gharbi, Mejbri; Achouri, Tounekti, Mastouri.

Stats for Mali v Tunisia

• Tunisia did not concede a goal in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, but have let in five so far in the AFCON.
• The Carthage Eagles are winless in four AFCON meetings with Mali, losing two and drawing two.
• Tunisia, however, lead the overall head-to-head with Mali, winning four of their seven encounters.
• Five different players have scored for Tunisia so far in the 2025 AFCON, with Elias Achouri scoring twice.
• By contrast, Lassine Sinayoko has scored both of Mali’s goals in the tournament.

Prediction

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