In the 3rd and final Group D group stage match, Tunisia (0 wins, 1 loss, 1 draw) and France (2-0-0) meet Wednesday at Education City Stadium in Doha at 10 a.m. ET (FOX/Universo). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Tunisia vs. France odds, and make our best World Cup bets, picks and predictions.
Tunisia opened the World Cup with a scoreless draw against Denmark on Nov. 22, before losing 1-0 to Australia on Saturday. The Eagles could still advance if things fall right, but that requires a win over the heavily-favored Les Bleus.
France fell behind 1-0 against the Socceroos on Nov. 22 in its title defense opener against the Aussies, but it rattled off 4 successive goals to win 4-1. It also scratched and clawed to get by a pesky Denmark side 2-1 on Saturday.
Kylian Mbappe has been the star everyone knew he would be, hitting the back of the net 3 times with 1 assist through 2 matches, while 36-year-old veteran Olivier Giroud posted the brace against the Socceroos, equaling Thierry Henry’s national record with his 51st international goal.
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Tunisia vs. France odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 11:01 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Tunisia +770 (bet $100 to win $770) | France -260 (bet $260 to win $100) | Draw +390
- Over/Under: 2.5 (O: -120 | U: +100)
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Prediction
France 1, Tunisia 0
Moneyline (ML)
France (-260) will cost you more than 2 1/2 times your potential return, and that’s a lot of risk for not much reward.
Les Bleus simply needs a draw, or a point, to top the Group D table and advance. Even with a miraculous win by Tunisia, France likely still has enough in the goal differential column over Australia, or any of the other teams, to make its way through.
As such, it wouldn’t be surprising to see some of France’s stars rest for considerable chunks of this match. Can you imagine how disastrous it would be if Mbappe or Giroud went down with a long-term ailment in a match which is essentially meaningless?
As such TUNISIA +2 (-140) makes some sense on the 3-way spread. The Eagles play tremendous defense, and Tunisia could be facing France’s B squad for a good majority of the 2nd half, but Tunisia pushes and still has a lot to play for depending upon the result of the Australia-Denmark match.
Over/Under (O/U)
The UNDER 2.5 (+100) is a strong play at even money.
Tunisia just doesn’t have the firepower on offense, and France should be rather disinterested in pushing the tempo. Les Bleus could be satisfied with a draw, which gets them through, or a low-scoring win.
Either way, I think the shots on goal and scoring chances will be at a premium.
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