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Match Context & Head-to-Head

This is a knockout tie in the AFCON Round of 16 at Stade Mohammed V, Casablanca. Confédération Africaine de Football
Historically Tunisia lead overall head-to-head (7 wins to Mali’s 5 with 3 draws), but Mali have the edge in AFCON meetings (unbeaten in 4: W2 D2). Confédération Africaine de Football+1
This is their first AFCON knockout clash after meeting in group stages in recent tournament

Aspect	Mali	Tunisia
Group Stage Results	3 draws (0 wins)	1 win, 1 draw, 1 loss
Current Form	Unbeaten in 6, but 4 consecutive draws	Inconsistent; winless in last 2 matches
Playing Style	Defensively solid, struggles to create chances	Attack-minded but defensively vulnerable
Key Strength	Defense (only 2 goals conceded)	Attack (6 goals scored)
Major Weakness	Lack of attacking sharpness	Leaky defense (5 goals conceded)
Head-to-Head Trend	Typically low-scoring, tight matches	Historically slight edge for Tunisia
One to Watch	Lassine Sinayoko (Top scorer, 2 goals)	Elias Achouri (Key attacker, 2 goals)

Mali’s path to victory relies on defensive discipline and patience. They must leverage their strong defensive record and frustrate Tunisia, likely looking to score from set-pieces or a moment of individual brilliance. However, they will be without the suspended midfielder Amadou Haidara, and key defenders Sikou Niakaté and Hamari Traoré are injury doubts.

Tunisia is expected to be the more proactive side. Their strategy will be to exploit their attacking fluency, using the pace and creativity of players like Hannibal Mejbri (who has 2 assists) and Elias Achouri to break down Mali’s block . Their main task is to tighten a defense that has looked shaky.

Prediction

While Mali is hard to beat, their lack of a cutting edge makes it difficult for them to secure a win. Tunisia’s firepower gives them a slight edge, but their defensive issues make a draw within 90 minutes a very strong possibility.

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