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Final matches of the first stage in group H will be played on Friday between the national teams of Ukraine and Tunisia. Since Saudi Arabia has little hope left, and Spain has already secured a place in the next stage, in this match the winner of the second ticket to the round of 16 will most likely be determined.
Ukraine - Tunisia Time: 17:00 h (Lithuanian time, live on LTV) Stadium: Berlin Olympic Stadium (72,000 seats) Referee: Carlos Amarilla (Paraguay)
Head-to-head meetings So far, these two national teams have never met.
Statistics and facts
Ukraine
In the first matches, one of the debutant teams of Ukraine played poorly. The field was clearly dominated by Spanish footballers, who crushed their opponents with a 4-0 result. After the match, it was clear that something needed to change in the team's game. Ukraine's coach Oleg Blokhin decided to change the formation to 3-5-2, and it worked well in the second match against Saudi Arabia, where the Ukrainians crushed their opponents with a 4-0 victory.
Goals in this World Cup have already been scored by forward players Serhiy Rebrov and Andriy Shevchenko, defender Maksym Kalynychenko, and defender Andriy Rusol.
This year Ukraine has won 6 out of 7 played matches. Only the match against Spain saw goals scored against them, in all other matches Ukrainians managed to keep a "clean sheet."
If Ukraine wins, in the next stage Ukrainian footballers will face either France, Switzerland, or South Korea.
Tunisia
In the so-called "Arab derby" match, the Tunisian footballers were considered favorites but only managed to equalize in the last minute and earn at least one point. Having gained a one-goal advantage in the first half, the Tunisians conceded two goals at the end of the match and only scored an equalizer in the last attack.
In the second match against Spain, unexpectedly in the 8th minute the Tunisian footballers sent the ball into the opponent's goal and maintained this lead until the 72nd minute. Unfortunately, they then conceded a goal and lost 3-1, without earning a single point. After the match, Roger Lemerre was not satisfied with the players' performance, as they were not attentive until the end of the match, but he did not give up hope to continue fighting in the tournament.
Notable players in the Tunisian team are three players: forward Ziad Jaziri, defender JAWHAR Mnari, and defender Radhi Jaidi.
The Tunisia team is participating in its fourth World Cup and hopes to advance to the next stage for the first time. It is worth mentioning that they led in both of their first two matches in this World Cup, but they failed to maintain their lead until the end.
"The Eagles of Carthage," participating in World Cups, have lost a total of 10 matches. Among all the teams gathered in Germany, this is the worst result dating back to 1978 when the Tunisian team became the first African country to win a World Cup match.
This year the Tunisians scored 16 goals in 11 matches (friendly matches, African Cup of Nations, World Cup). They were marked by twelve different players.
As a coach, Roger Lemerre has not yet won a match in a World Cup. In 2002, the French national team he was leading lost to Denmark and Senegal, and played a draw with Uruguay.
Players and coaches' thoughts before the match
"I don't think any player stepping onto the field will play for a draw because he knows how it can end," said Andriy Shevchenko, recognized as the 2004 European Footballer of the Year. "We had very tough matches before this."
"We will undoubtedly play for a victory. This is my strategy and philosophy," said Ukraine's national team coach Oleg Blokhin briefly.
"We have hopes, and that is the most important thing," said Tunisia's national team coach R. Lemerre briefly. "There are reasons to be optimistic."
Verdict:
A draw suits the Ukrainian national team, but only if the Saudi Arabian footballers do not defeat the Spanish national team, which is not very likely. The "Eagles of Carthage" must win if they want to advance to the round of 16, but again, if Saudi Arabia wins, the goal difference will be considered. However, winning against Ukraine will be difficult, as the Ukrainians seem to have found their game and have recovered from the blow in the first match, and they are taking the field only for a victory. But again, one can remember Tunisia's match against Spain's eleven, where we saw a decent game in the first half.
Predicted starting lineups:
Ukraine (3-5-2): 1-Oleksander Shovkovsky; 6-Andriy Rusol, 17-Vladislav Vashchyuk, 2-Andriy Nesmachny; 9-Oleg Gusev, 4-Anatoly Tymoshchyuk, 8-Oleg Shelayev, 19-Maxim Kalinichenko, 11-Serhiy Rebrov; 7-Andriy Shevchenko, 10-Andriy Voronin. Coach: Oleg Blokhin
Tunisia (4-5-1): 1-Ali Boumnijel; 6-Hatem Trabelsi, 15-Radhi Jaidi, 3-Karim Hagui, 19-Anis Ayari; 20-Hamed Namouchi, 12-Joahar Mnari, 14-Adel Chedli, 8-Medhi Nafti, 13-Riadh Bouazizi; 5-Ziad Jaziri. Coach: Roger Lemerre
