Tunisia Team Profile - 2010 Africa Cup of Nations

December 14, 2009 By Angela Asante

Topics: Tunisia, 2010 Africa Cup of Nations

In one of our last trips around the sixteen participating nations at the upcoming 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, Live Soccer TV takes you to the smallest of countries located along the range of the Atlas Mountain. Discover Tunisia as a footballing nation!

Tunisia – the country, the football

Tunisia is a North African country bordered by the Mediterranean Sea, Libya, and Algeria. It covers about 165,000 km² of land and it is populated by well over 10 million inhabitants.

The country’s name originates from Tunis, the capital which is situated in the north-east. Tunisia is well known for its ‘fabulous’ ancient histories (the city of Carthage, the coming of the Byzantines, the ruling of the Ottoman Empire…).

Nowadays, the country is under the influence of several European nations – including the French who gave Tunisians their independence in 1956.

In this Islamic zone, where up to 98% of the population is Muslim, football is the number one sport. The national soccer team, “The Eagles of Carthage” (Les Aigles du Carthage, in French), have brought much joy to the people of Tunisia over the past years.

Having participated in four World Cup finals and being the first African side to win a match at the World Cup, Tunisa are amongst the continent’s elites.

Perhaps, they had to endure disappointment at many occasions throughout their history of football. However, their 2004 Africa Cup of Nations’ success on home soil looked to have erased all the past tribulations.

Now after failing to repeat this achievement at two consecutive occasions, Tunisia will hope that the third try in Angola will offer them grace.

Tunisia – the road to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations

Being part of Africa’s elites in terms of football, Tunisia were selected in Pot A during the draws ahead of Round 2. They had Seychelles, Burundi, and Burkina Faso in Group 9.

Tunisia were somehow fortunate that not only the table leaders qualified onto the next stage as they surprisingly finished second behind Burkina Faso after a total of six matches.

The Eagles of Carthage picked up 13 points and a positive goal difference of 8 goals on their road to Round 3, being part of the best 8 runners-up.

According to the FIFA World Rankings, Tunisia couldn’t make it as top seeds but only managed a place in Pot 2 ahead of the draws for the third round.

Subsequently, Tunisia were selected along with Mozambique, Kenya, and top seeds Nigeria in Group B. The Eagles of Carthage almost looked set to seal a first spot finish en route to what they wanted most, South Africa 2010.

However, they were taken by surprise by Nigeria’s lucky comeback. Still, Tunisia ended up in the safe zone with a second place finish and 11 points which was enough to qualify for the finals of the upcoming 2010 Africa Cup of Nations.

Tunisia – 2010 Africa Cup of Nations group stage

Tunisia have been drawn in the last group of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations’ tournament. They are poised to qualify at least as runners-up of their table which also contains Zambia and Gabon.

Match-day One:

It will be a must-win game for Tunisia who suffered a big blow on the last day of the World Cup qualifiers. Commencing on a good note will be very important for the Eagles of Carthage in order to boost the confidence and brush away any doubts of a shock.

The match is schedule to start on January 13th in a late kick off (18:30 GMT) at the Estadio Alto da Chela.

Match-day Two:

Tunisia’s second match will be against Gabon at 16:00 GMT. The 2004 African champions will hope to see their opponents off on January as they march on to the second round of the competition.

Match-day Three:

Some say the best is kept for the end. Indeed, it’s Cameroon v Tunisia on January 21st at 16:00 GMT in the last match of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations group stages. The importance of this particular fixture will only be known after the first two match-days.

Will it offer any thrill and excitement in terms of significance?

Tunisia – 2010 Africa Cup of Nations squad

Here is Tunisia's 23-man squad which will compete at the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations:

Goalkeepers:

F. Ben Mustapha; A. Mathlouti; A. Nefzi

Defenders:

S. Ben Radhia; K. Chammam; A. El Jemal; R. Felhi; K. Haggui; B. Ifa; Y. Mikari; K. Souissi

Midfielders:

C. Hammemi; K. Korbi; H. Mrabet; M. Nafkha; H. Ragued

Attackers:

A. Akaichi; A. Chermiti; O. Darragi; Z. Dhadouadi; I. Jemaa; Y. Msakni; C. Saada

Tunisia – Quick analysis: Things to expect from the Eagles of Carthage

A hungry approach, a determined spirit, and a lot of pace… these are three things that the followers of the upcoming 2010 Africa Cup of Nations tournament will expect from Tunisia.

Their first and last cup success in this competition came back in 2004 on their own soil. So far, the Eagles of Carthage have not managed to taste glory away from their land but the need to do so has now reached its critical level.

Picking up bronze or silver medals won’t even satisfy Tunisian fans. All that they want is the cup back in Tunis and this will demand extra team efforts from the national squad.

Forwards Jemaa and Chermiti have proven to be very influential at times but they are not the only ones that will need to carry the load of the country’s dream.

Tunisia’s head coach Faouzi Benzarti will have to work out his tactics very well in order to combat the rage of the Cameroonians, and the skill of other participant nations.