Winding up Alli? You have given me a good idea
Tunisia coach tells his side to target midfielder England much stronger than at Euros, he warns
in Volgograd
Dele Alli is the England player the Tunisia manager, Nabil Maaloul, has told his team to target in tonight’s Group G encounter.
Maaloul believes Alli represents England’s most dangerous weapon because of his relationship with Harry Kane for both club and Tunisia conceded only four goals in six qualifying games. The key result was achieved in October, when star man Youssef Msakni (below) scored a hat-trick as they came from behind to defeat Guinea. Unfortunately for Msakni, who plays his club football in Qatar, it was his last significant involvement in their World Cup journey as he was later ruled out of the tournament with a knee injury. Nabil Maaloul, the manager, had said before the injury that Tunisia playing without Msakni was similar to Argentina playing without
Lionel Messi. country. He has told his team that stopping the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder will give Tunisia the best chance of causing an upset in the Volgograd Arena.
“Dele Alli is a very good player, an excellent player,” said Maaloul. “This is the future of the England national team. He can play anywhere – midfielder in the middle, second forward, behind the forward, out on the left. He’s so important.
“It’s very important we close him down because we know the partnership between him and Kane, because they play together all season. possession-based game when they have the ball. There is a nice balance, and unlike many teams in Russia there is no overreliance on key players. They have impressed in the build-up by drawing with Portugal and coming within six minutes of holding Spain to a goalless draw.
“If we manage to break that association, that would be a huge advantage. The English national team are a homogenous team, with lots of collective play, with [Ashley] Young or [Danny] Rose from the left. They have so many weapons, but the most dangerous weapon is Dele Alli in the way he sees the match and plays that last pass.”
Asked whether Tunisia would try to wind up Alli and get him in trouble with the officials, Maaloul joked: “You’ve given me a good idea. I hadn’t thought about that.”
Despite claiming that England could win the World Cup, Maaloul rates Belgium as the favourites to top Group G. “There is nothing to In the absence of Youssef Msakni, the creative responsibility is likely to be shared between a trio of attacking midfielders. Saif-eddine Khaoui (above), one of four French-born players to have been recruited since Tunisia sealed qualification, is a sleek and graceful playmaker who will hope to dovetail with the explosive Naim Sliti in attack. The midfield security will come from
Ellyes Skhiri. Wahbi Khazri (right), the striker, is technically still a Sunderland player but spent last season on loan with Rennes, where he impressed. He was less of a threat in English football, scoring just three goals in 38 appearances for Sunderland. Yohan Benalouane, the centre-half who is not expected to start the game, is a lesserspotted Leicester City centre-half. Never trusted by Claude Puel in the Premier Tunisia became the first African team to win a World Cup game when they beat Mexico 3-1 in 1978. They had to wait two decades for their next appearance, in France in 1998, but promptly finished at the bottom of their group. The Eagles of Carthage, as they are known, qualified again in 2002 and 2006, when they lost to Spain (right), but finished fourth and third respectively, again failing to reach the knockout stages. explain,” said Maaloul. “This is the Fifa classification. The performance of the Belgian team over the past few months shows that. That is obvious. There is nothing to say about that.
“When you see the individuals who make up the Belgium team, sincerely they can be in the last four of the World Cup. England also have a lot of excellent players and they all play in the same championship, which is always good for the club. For many other countries, their players are spread around. I think Belgium are a little bit favourites in this group. But just a little bit.”
Maaloul revealed he was in Nice League, he only played in cup competitions last season. He told
before flying to Russia that he was talking to Leicester club-mates Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire “every day”, adding: “We will get a drink together after.” on the night England suffered the most humiliating defeat of their history against Iceland in Euro 2016, but he does not expect that result to have any impact on this World Cup.
“I was at the stadium,” said Maaloul. “I was there watching and analysing the matches. I can say, frankly, I have not really focused on analysing the Iceland v England performance since that match.
“I think that more than 70 per cent of the players have changed since then. There is a new team that we are seeing in England. The current English team is much stronger than that in 2016, so it won’t be the same thing.” Nabil Maaloul (left) is in his second spell in charge of Tunisia, having taken over in April last year after Polish manager Henryk Kasperczak was sacked. His first stint ended in 2013, when he resigned after a shock defeat by the Cape Verde Islands had ended their hopes of reaching the 2014 World Cup. “My players were totally hopeless,” he said. Maaloul made 74 appearances for Tunisia as a player and was the assistant manager during the 2006 World Cup, when they failed to progress from their group.