Tunisia vs Japan Predictions - Japan to dominate against humbled Tunisia

John Eastwood

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Last updated: 2 hours ago

John Eastwood 2 hours ago

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Japan are strong favorites after a solid start and Tunisia's poor form.
Tunisia suffered a 5-1 loss, replaced their coach, and have lost 3 straight.
Ayase Ueda (Japan) is tipped to score after a 25-goal season for Feyenoord.

Ayase Ueda is expected to lead Japan's offense (Getty Images)

Tunisia vs Japan Predictions

Tunisia have a very good side, as they showed during qualifying, but they have been in disarray recently. A 5-1 loss to Sweden in their opener, didn't help and I do not feel they will recover to get a result against a good Japan side. Tunisia also replaced their coach after that opening defeat, a mostly unheard of move.

Tunisia vs Japan Predictions
Head to Head
Tunisia Form
Japan Form
Tunisia vs Japan News & Predicted Lineups

Tunisia have lost their last 3 matches.
Tunisia have lost to nil in 2 of their last 3 matches.
Japan beat Tunisia 2-0 in their most recent h2h.
Japan have won to nil in 5 of their last 6 matches.
Japan's Ayase Ueda has scored 25 goals in his last 31 Eredivisie matches for Feyenoord.

Head to Head

These two have met six times with Japan winning five and Tunisia one.

Tunisia Form

Tunisia looked disastrous in their World Cup 2026 opener against Sweden, losing 5-1, which prompted drastic changes as national team coach Sabri Lamouchi was dismissed and Herve Renard appointed as his replacement within hours.

Omar Rekik scored their only goal of the match, finding the net just before half time from Hannibal Mejbri’s assist. The Eagles of Carthage created little else in attack.

Tunisia also struggled in their pre-tournament friendlies, suffering back-to-back defeats to Austria (1-0), despite playing with a one-man advantage for more than 50 minutes, and Belgium (5-0), where they managed just one shot on target.

Japan Form

Japan were tireless and disciplined in their WC 2026 opening clash against the Netherlands, deservedly claiming a point in a dramatic 2-2 draw.

They fell behind twice but responded both times through goals from Keito Nakamura in the 57th minute and Daichi Kamada in the 89th minute.

The Blue Samurai also did a great job in their friendly matches this year, beating both Scotland and England 1-0 on British soil in March, while the same scoreline was recorded in their final test against Iceland earlier this month.

Tunisia vs Japan News & Predicted Lineups

Tunisia (4-3-3) Aymen Dahmen; Yan Valery, Montassar Talbi, Dylan Bronn, Mortadha Ben Ouanes; Ellyes Skhiri, Anis Ben Slimane, Hannibal Mejbri; Elias Achouri, Elias Saad, Ismael Gharbi

Rani Khedira was one of the worst rated players in the opening fiasco against Sweden so I expect Elias Achouri to take his place in the starting lineup.

Japan (4-2-3-1) Zion Suzuki; Yukinari Sugawara, Ko Itakura, Hiroki Ito, Yuto Nagatomo; Wataru Endo, Ao Tanaka; Takefusa Kubo, Daichi Kamada, Ritsu Doan; Ayase Ueda

Everything worked perfectly in their opener so I don't expect any chances to their starting lineup. Midfielder Daichi Kamada was named man of the match against the Netherlands, netting a late equalizer, while Keito Nakamura had the most shots (3).

Verdict

Tunisia v Japan

Japan held the Netherlands to just 0.79 xG and their results have been impressive this year, beating England, Scotland and Iceland. Tunisia’s spirits are at very low level after losing to Sweden 5-1, so I am backing the Asian side to win here.

Another bet worth considering is Ayase Ueda to score anytime. He had an amazing season with Feyenoord (scored 25 goals in the Eredivisie) and is expected to lead the attack.